The Zero Reverse Event
by Daisythebird
Summary: 18 years after DSOD Yugi and his friends are thriving. The future's looking bright until the Zero Reverse takes it all away. What seems like the end turns out to be a new beginning. Atem's back with a mission. The problem is he's still a teenager. The world's changed, the Pharaoh's friends have new troubles and he has new enemies. This time around, Yugi is the one protecting him.
1. Welcome to Domino City

**Author's note:** **This fic is mostly going to take place in the duel monsters dub universe, with Season Zero, GX, and 5D's added in. Don't worry. You'll only have to see Duel monsters to understand what is going on. The rest is explained as the story goes along. Thank you again for reading!**

 **For those of you that want to do the math here is the ages I'm working off of, Yugi was 15 when he solved the puzzle but thanks to his summer birthday he was 18 when DSOD happened. The series took place over four years starting at Season Zero. Everyone else was between 16-19 when Season Zero began. Rebecca was 12 when they met her, DSOD took place one year after the ending of Duel Monsters, GX took place ten years after the original series, etc.**

Yugi stepped off the plane terminal and took a deep breath. It had been so long since he had last been in Domino city. Fifteen years, fifteen years since he had the privilege of living in his hometown. Not that he didn't try to come back to this city often. This is where some of his dear friends and family still lived. The one he was currently going to see was his mother, who ran Grandpa's world-famous game shop. Yugi's popularity as the reigning King of Games had helped put the shop in the spotlight. But another spotlight had pulled Yugi away from all this. His dream of making his own game.

While he didn't have to turn into an archeologist to make this game, it did take a lot of traveling and business meetings. People to impress and connection to make if he wanted a hope of competing in this hologram and VR flooded game market. Add on being married and adopting two beautiful children in the last ten years. Domino city just didn't have what Yugi needed in a home. Until now. After years of this game in the making, it was finally on shelves. In video game form and card form. The sales of this game were what allowed Yugi to finally move his family to the expensive Domino city.

Yugi's family couldn't come with him today thanks to his oldest having to finish the school semester, but they would be here in a week. He could finally show his kids where he had grown up. This thought brought a smile to his face as he collected his luggage and headed out of the airport. Outside was a sunny winter day. He took a moment to see how much the city had changed. KaibaCorp sure had grown this place. The most apparent change was an Ener-D reactor in the center of the city. It supposedly collected duel energy and turned it into usable energy for everyday appliances. Whatever it was, it sure took up a lot of space. Not that Yugi minded, it was because of this breakthrough Kaiba was in a good enough mood to even look at Yugi's crazy new game idea. It was through KaibaCorp technology that Yugi's game gained an edge over its competitors.

As Yugi walked he noticed a large number of duel spirits in this city, much more than his old town in America. These spirits were creatures from a parallel dimension Yugi and his friends freed from Dartz. After that whole adventure, duel spirits started coming to this world more thanks to the duel monsters card game. Less than one percent of the population could see these spirits. These spirits tended not to care, becoming invisible partners to those that wielded their cards well. Yugi felt a small pang of loneliness as his spirit partner, Gandora the Dragon of Destruction, was not with him at the moment. The lazy dragon was staying in America as long as she could, refusing to move until the very end.

Yugi flagged down a cab and gave the driver the address for his Grandpa's shop. He had purposefully asked his mother not to pick him up. He didn't want to mess with her busy schedule. He could have had any other of his friends pick him up, but he didn't want to bother them either. So he told no one of his early arrival, not until he could fully move into his house. He sat back in the taxi and admired the world around him. The sun, the water, the nostalgia it was all so- SCREECH

Yugi was flung forward as the cab had to come to a sudden stop. Thankfully his seatbelt stopped him from face-planting into the chair in front of him.

"What happened?" Yugi asked. The cab driver growled.

"A duel, right in the middle of the street. I ought to call the police on these kids for dueling in an illegal area. Don't these kids know the duel laws?!" The cab driver huffed as he smashed his cab horn. Yugi sighed but tried to smile. He would be home soon. Why ruin this feeling with annoyance?

The two kids didn't seem to react to the cab's horn. Both of the boys appeared to be more scared of losing than breaking the law.

'Duel Monsters sure have gotten big.' Yugi thought to himself. The world pretty much revolved around the game. Yugi wondered just how many wars, elections, and treaties had been fought with these cards? Entire schools were dedicated to this game because of its importance. All from a small card game from the 90s.

"That's it, I'm not waiting. Move it!" The cab driver yelled as he raced through the monster holograms covering the street. Yugi clung onto the handholds as the crazy driver blew through the duel. For a split second the driver couldn't see anything, causing the car to careen onto the sidewalk. With the speed he was going at the driver couldn't pull the car back on the road. He ran straight into a fire hydrant. Yugi was once again nearly strangled by his seatbelt as everything flew forward. The airbags in the car went off. Yugi blinked, everything was spinning. He slowly reached for the car door and plopped out.

"Well, that's one way to welcome you to Domino city." The cab driver said as he got out of the car. Yugi nodded. Other than the world's new rotation, everything else was fine. Even the cab driver seemed to be ok, despite being closer to the damage. He didn't hit the hydrant that hard, just enough to dent the car.

The two turned as police sirens blared behind them. The duelists from earlier had already fled the scene, Yugi almost wished he could have joined them. A single, motorcycle riding policeman turned the corner and stopped behind the wreck. The policeman took off his helmet and walked over. Yugi rubbed his eyes and tried to focus on the policeman's face. Could it really be?

"Tetsu?" Yugi gasped. Tetsu, an old high school bully of Yugi's. Back then he had beat up Joey and Tristan (who had also been old bullies of Yugi's) and tried to impose a bodyguard fee. Unluckily for him, that was the same time Yugi had finally solved the Millennium Puzzle. Tetsu, the first victim of a newly awaken, confused, and completely crazy pharaoh.

'No.' Yugi shook his head. He refused to remember those events in that light. Because of those events, he gained the best group of friends he could have ever asked for.

"Yugi? Is that you!?" Tetsu asked. Yugi smiled as he shakily walked forward. Tetsu paused in front of Yugi. Seconds passed in silence between the two. Yugi had no idea what to say. The last time he had seen Tetsu, the upperclassman was being carted away to a mental intuition. Tetsu seemed equally as lost.

"You know this nice officer?" The cab driver asked. Yugi blinked, remembering that the cab driver was even there.

"Er, yes. He was a high school classmate of mine." Yugi smiled. Trying to show Tetsu he had no grudges.

"That's good. Then can you tell the nice officer that a duel was played in the street? That's why we crashed. It was not our fault." The cab driver grinned at Tetsu as he wrapped his arm around Yugi's shoulder. Yugi sighed at "our fault" and pulled away from the driver.

"I know about the duel, that's why I was called here actually. As a police rookie, it's my job to break up duels like this." Tetsu turned to the place the duelers had been, then to the crashed taxi. "But I think this commotion did my job for me." He then turned back to Yugi. "What are you doing here, Yugi? Didn't you just release a new game? Shouldn't the King of Games be at some big party, not this side of town?" Yugi winced at his title. While he still actively defended his title, he wasn't a fan of being referred by it. With the world now running on a card game, the title meant much more than Yugi was comfortable with.

"The King of Games?!" The cab driver gasped. "Oh, I'm so sorry, sir…. If I had known who was in my car…" The cab driver gasped as he tried to find his words.

"It's no problem, really." Yugi tried.

"I-I must get your luggage out immediately! I can't let it get damaged!" The cab driver finally spat out as he ran back to the car. He started fighting with the unwilling car to get Yugi's items out of the trunk.

"You don't have to do that! Oh, dear." Yugi sighed.

"…I'm sorry… I should have guessed you were trying to be discreet." Tetsu exhaled. Yugi turned back to Tetsu. While Yugi was quite proud of his late growth spurt, he was still short for a grown adult. Tetsu was a giant of a man, just as he had been in high school. Now though, this giant was gripping his helmet and fidgeting at every little move Yugi made. Yugi had to say something, because of him this man had probably spent years in therapy.

"Um, Tetsu, I just want to say… about back then." Yugi started. Tetsu raised his hand.

"I'm not just sorry for blowing your cover. All those years ago… Back then, I had many problems that I managed to hide from others, even myself. But what you did… whatever it was. It brought all those problems forth. Because of that, I received some real help. Something I would have been too prideful and greedy to get myself. I am now much better than how I would have been. I appreciate that… That's all I want to say on the subject." He ended. Yugi blinked in surprise. "Now can you help me stop this guy before he throws his back out? Mr. Not King of Games?" Tetsu asked. Yugi paused a second, then smiled and nodded. The two walked to the sweating and swearing cab driver. Well, that is a nice welcome to Domino city.

...

"Welcome home Yugi." his mother said as she kissed her son's forehead.

"Thanks, Mom." Yugi smiled. He turned back to wave to Tetsu as he drove away. Yugi's mother tilted her head as the two walked back into the house/shop.

"First you don't want me to pick you up at the airport. Then you are brought here on the back of a police motorcycle. You just love making your mother fret." She sighed.

"Sorry Mom, I didn't want to worry you about picking me up. I know how hard it is to run this shop alone." Yugi said as he brought in his luggage. His grandpa, the man that got him into his love of gaming, had died many years ago. He was at a ripe old age, and it was definitely his time, but thinking about him still hurt a little.

"I'm not alone Yugi. While Solomon is no longer here, I still have your father and many kind employees." His mother said. Yugi nodded, then stopped. He looked around the store. The two had already walked past the front room that used to work as the game store's front. This shop had initially been one little room with a counter and a few shelves. Now though, the store had been expanded to almost all the lower rooms of the house. Each filled with vibrantly colored boxes and toys. Nothing Yugi didn't expect, but…

"It's only two o'clock. Shouldn't this place be open and filled with people?" Yugi asked. His mother giggled at Yugi's confusion.

"No, I closed the place today, but people are here." Yugi's mother started pushing him forward to the very back room.

"Huh?! What do you mean-?" Yugi was suddenly met by bright lights and cheerful yells.

"Welcome home, Yugi!" He was surrounded by three familiar faces jumping out from behind furniture.

"Guys, what are you doing here?" Yugi grinned as Joey, Tristan, and Duke came forward. Joey pretty much ran to Yugi. Yugi opened his arms for a hug, but that was never Joey's style. In one quick movement, Yugi found himself in one of Joey's famous headlocks.

"We're here because of you, ya big idiot!" Joey yelled as he gripped Yugi.

"How dare you try to sneak into Domino city without telling us," Tristan added.

"I didn't want to make a big ruckus with only me!" Yugi laughed as he weakly fought against Joey's grip.

"You better be thankful for your Mother, or else this ruckus would not have happened. She called us one day ago, not realizing you were trying to be sneaky. It's like you didn't want to see us." Duke said in a jokingly dramatic voice. Both he and Tristan turned their backs to Yugi to feed more into their dramatics. Yugi sighed, he then pushed Joey off in one quick movement.

"It's not that I didn't want to see you guys. I just came early to finish up some paperwork and re-check the new house. It's not very exciting, and I knew all you guys were busy-" All three turned to Yugi.

"Not very excitin'?! Yugi is comin' home to his roots. Comin' home to us from his world travelin'! If dat's not excitin', I don't know what is!" Joey said.

Yugi grinned at his friends. They had all grown and changed so much. Joey was now even taller with longer and shaggier blonde hair. It even looked like he was trying to grow a mustache, and failing. Tristen was also taller with much more muscle. He was a security guard at KaibaCorp. It made Yugi smile to see him still a protector. Duke had stayed about the same size, but that hasn't stopped his "mojo" or whatever it was that drove all the ladies crazy. He had been one of Yugi's main supporters throughout his game development process.

"Well, I'm glad you guy are here. It might make this last-minute paperwork bearable." Yugi said.

"That's the attitude!" Tristen said as he patted Yugi on the shoulder. He then stopped to really grip Yugi's shoulder for a second. "Whoa, you have certainly been hitting the gym." He added.

"I felt dat. It's not like I let him throw me off." Joey said while rubbing the arm Yugi had grabbed to push him off.

Yugi scratched the back of his head and smiled."Heh, sorry. I've been working out for a while now. It's like a small game. Seeing how far I can push myself every morning."

Suddenly, the ground started to shake violently. While Yugi was used to earthquakes, this felt different. This felt more like someone was crinkling the ground like a piece of paper.

"What was that?" Yugi asked after it had settled down.

"Oh, it's the Ener-D reactor. It's happening all the time." Duke said nonchalantly. "It sometimes does that. It's not dangerous other than things falling off of tables." Yugi blinked and looked at the other's reactions. They had the same uncaring look.

"It's really nothin' Yuge. You know KaibaCorp made sure of dat. Now to the important things, like what in the world is your work out plan?! You threw me off like I was a paperweight." Joey excitedly asked.

"Hey, you don't just ask a man his workout secrets. Don't worry Yugi, I'll protect them, once you tell me them." Tristen mischievously smiled.

"Don't you go buttin' in Tristen or I'll show you my workout routine!" Joey yelled in Tristen's face. Everyone else sighed as the two continued to go at it. Some things never change.


	2. Why Jog?

It was a crisp morning in Domino city. The sky was still dark, as the sun wouldn't peak over the horizon for another hour. Every living thing should have been tucked away in bed, every sane living thing.

"You serious Yuge?! The birds aren't even awake yet; why run at this time?" Joey whined. Yugi smiled at his old friend's half-hearted complaints. This was the tenth time Joey had mentioned sleep since the two had left the game shop.

"You didn't have to come with me, Joey. I know I'm the crazy one here." Yugi replied. A combination of jet lag and the rumbling from the Ener-D reactor had stopped Yugi from getting any real sleep these last few nights. So, he did what he always did when he couldn't sleep. He ran.

"No way, Yuge, how could I let my friend do somethin' as stupid as run dese streets at night, alone." Joey grinned through his ragged breaths.

"Technically it's not night. It's only four o'clock am." Yugi said.

"Don't remind me." Joey groaned. The pro duelist had to stop and take a breath. Yugi stopped too and handed his own water bottle to Joey.

"Thanks." Joey breathed as he nearly gulped it all down. This entire jog Yugi had to go at a much slower speed than he was used to. All to stay with Joey, Yugi didn't mind this in the least.

"I haven't woken up dis early since I did paper routes. Seriously Yuge, why jog?" Joey eventually gasped.

"Oh well, it helps your cardio and your endurance. I also like the mind-clearing effect it has." Yugi started to list.

"Mind clearin'? All I can think about is how tired I am." Joey groaned as the two started jogging down the docks again.

"Well, you're doing great Joey. We'll be back in the shop soon, and we can stop." Yugi smiled.

"I don't just mean the runnin' Yuge. Seriously, when did the game addict dat I had to pull out of the locker room every gym turn into an early mornin' runner?" Joey asked.

"Huh, that's actually a good question. It was a very slow process, I assure you." Yugi answered.

"Slow process or not, you have to have some idea of what started it. Because right now, all I can think of is dat you went crazy and are tryin' to kill me slowly." Joey puffed. Yugi laughed and slowed down a little more for his friend.

"Hmm, I think it started sometime after high school. I figured since I no longer had a alter ego to protect me from bullies, I'd do it myself." Yugi smiled; Joey didn't smile back. His face became much more serious. "I think… As I said, this was a long process of whining and procrastination, there was no real starting point." Yugi quickly added. Joey continued to look over Yugi, probably looking any sign of hidden pain.

Yugi was one of the slowest when it came to accepting Atem's parting (only beaten by, surprisingly, Kaiba). It made sense, Yugi and Atem had shared a bond that Joey could only begin to understand. A relationship like that, you don't just move on from. Joey had gotten pretty good at noticing when the pain was getting too much for Yugi, something that had helped Yugi immensely through the last year of high school. Years later, Joey was still keeping an eye on Yugi's pain.

"Err, Joey... you might want to watch where you're-" Yugi started, but before he could say more Joey crashed right into a light post. A torrent of unique and strange profanities soon filled the morning air.

"You ok, Joey?" Yugi asked as he bent down to help his friend up.

"Ya, ya I'm fine," Joey grumbled as he got to his feet. "Just why would dey put a lamp post dere?!" This was followed by another tapestry of curses aimed at the innocent light post.

"That's good." Yugi sighed, "I don't want to be the reason why the pro dueling circuit lost their best duelist. How is that going for you by the way?" Yugi asked as the two started to jog again, hoping to change the subject.

"Huh? Oh, it's goin' great. I'm goin' to another world championship in a few months. Dis one's held in Rio." Joey smiled. "If I win, it'll be my third world title. I might just be challengin' you soon, so watch yourself Yuge." Joey said. Yugi nodded.

The two continued to run in silence for another half a mile. They were inside the city at this point. Many of the tall skyscrapers had high LED screens on them that ran constant ads or news reports. When Joey needed another break, Yugi couldn't help but look at these bright screens. One advertisement even caught Joey's attention.

"Heh, look at dat smug jerk." Joey pointed to an advertisement for the next line of Duel Disks. Half of the ad had the duel disk; the other half was covered with Seto Kaiba's cold face.

"He really hasn't changed, has he?" Yugi said. "And not just in ego."

Seto Kaiba had been the CEO of KaibaCorp for the last twenty-two years. Yet, he still looked like the nineteen-year-old Yugi had grown up with. The last time Yugi had seen him, he was at Yugi's game release party. The only thing even hinting at Seto's age is the limp he now had in his right leg. Yugi was never quite sure where Seto got that limp. After the Diva incident, Kaiba disappeared for eight months. Only Mokuba seemed to know where his brother went. Then, just as suddenly as he left, Seto was back. With only that limp to hint that he was even gone.

"He must be usin' all the plastic surgery money can buy to stay lookin' dat young." Joey laughed. "Don't know why he'd do dat dough, because to me he just looks like a snot nose teen dat just a got a hold of his dad's money."

"I don't know what's going on, but the public seems to love him. All he needs to do is put his face on something, and it immediately sells like crazy." Yugi added.

"And I'm usin' dat to my advantage," Joey said as he pulled out his pro dueling license. On it, in bold letters, it said sponsored by KaibaCorp. Yugi's eyes widened at the sight of the sponsorship.

"You-you finally managed to get sponsored by KaibaCorp?!" Yugi gasped. "What happened to your old sponsorship? I thought you liked being sponsored by the Truesdale Brothers?"

"Eh, dey were fine, but dey were trying to start dis weird style of duels on motorcycles. I really didn't want to be a part of dat, so I thought I'd ask Mokuba if dey'd take on an amazin' duelist like me." Joey said proudly. "Dey have been sponsoring me ever since. And you know what the best part of it is? Dat jerk Seto doesn't even know!" Joey laughed as he pointed to the ad. "You hear dat ya snob?! You are now payin' for Joey Wheeler, JOEY WHEELER to travel the world in luxury!" Joey continued to laugh.

"And you now represent that snob and his entire company," Yugi added with a chuckle. Joey's back immediately stiffened.

"Nyeh, I don't like to think about dat part. Let's keep runnin'. We're almost to the shop anyways." Joey quickly said before racing off.

The ground started to shake again from the Ener-D reactor, but Joey didn't seem to react. The shaking offset Yugi, but he quickly caught up with Joey (even though Joey's legs are about the length of two of his). This time Yugi decided to stay just a little behind Joey. There was no way that Seto did not know what duelist his company sponsored. True, Mokuba could try to hide it from his brother, but Yugi didn't see him doing that.

"Seto, you big softy," Yugi said under his breath as the two rounded the corner.


	3. The Shaking Still Hadn't Stopped

"Phew" Yugi fell back on his old bed. Today he signed the last of the paperwork and finally had the key to his new house. Only one more day until his family would be here. Then the fun of moving to an entirely different country would begin.

Bringing Yugi out of his thoughts was the shaking again. After a week Yugi thought he'd be used to it, but there was always something different about each quake. Yugi hoped his family wouldn't mind it too much, or all this would be for nothing.

The shaking still hadn't stopped after a minute. Strange, most quakes only lasted a few seconds. The quaking had gone on for so long that Yugi's old mirror fell off the wall. Yugi unsteadily got to his feet and picked up the mirror.

'Good, it didn't break.' Yugi hung it back up on the wall and made sure to secure this time. As he did this, he couldn't help but look into his reflection. He had indeed grown from the shy kid in high school. One, he was proud to say he was a whole foot taller, and two… he looked more like Atem now. People that knew the spirit all mentioned it. Joey, Mokuba, even Pegasus had all said something along those lines. While Yugi didn't know if he should take it as a compliment, he could see what they were talking about. While his features were still much rounder than Atem's, his face had grown edges as he had gotten older. Add on his new height, and Yugi could almost see the Pharaoh in the mirror before him.

Yugi held a little longer onto the edges of the mirror. While he could see Atem in his face, he could also still imagine the pharaoh behind him, just as he had been all those years. Always right with him, whether it was a terrifying spirit as he had first been, to the true friend he became.

Yugi gripped the mirror's edge harder. He could still remember when Atem had passed on. After the group had gotten back to Japan, he had fallen into a deep depression. He knew it was for the best, he knew it was coming, he knew his friend must be happy, but that didn't stop the emptiness that followed him everywhere. Going from sharing your life with a dear friend to no one being there… it was probably the hardest challenge he had gone through. And that's counting the multiple maniacs trying to take over/destroy the world.

Yugi had gotten so bad that his father even came home early from a business trip to try and help Yugi. Of course, his mother and father did not know about Atem or any of their adventures. It was something you couldn't just explain and expect to be taken seriously. Despite not knowing what made Yugi mourn, his parents were still there for him, along with the rest of his dear friends. Without them pushing and encouraging him forward, Yugi knew he would not have made it to graduation.

Yugi finally let go of the mirror. The shaking had stopped; there was no reason to hold onto it any longer. He shook his head at the sad place his thoughts had gone. Egypt wasn't even the last time Yugi got to see Atem. Right after defeating Diva, just for a few seconds, the two had a chance to see each other again. No words needed to be said, though Yugi did wish he had gotten over his pride and hugged the pharaoh. Atem was happy in the afterlife, and Yugi was fine in this life. That's all they needed.

"Hey, Yugi." A voice said outside Yugi's door.

"Hey Dad, what do you need?" Yugi asked as he opened the door-

No sound, no flash of light, just white.


	4. He Wasn't that Lucky

Yugi found himself on the ground, staring up into a cloudless blue sky. He winced at the bright sun. It was nighttime only a few seconds ago, what happened? Yugi then slowly got to his feet.

"Dad?" Yugi called as he looked around. He was by a large river surrounded by miles and miles of desert. Yugi rubbed his head as he looked around. 'Ok, what magic/evil got me this time? Or is this a dream?'

Yugi looked along the great river he was beside. If he followed it, there seemed to be a city ahead of him. In fact, this city looked familiar. A thought then popped into his head, but as soon as the idea came, Yugi immediately pushed it away. Maybe he had fallen asleep somehow and was dreaming. He did dream of Egypt often. Yugi looked back around to make sure his room wouldn't suddenly appear. Nope, he wasn't that lucky. Yugi sighed and started to walk towards the city.

With the sun being as bright as it was, Yugi prepared for a long hike, but the heat never got too intense. It was just comfortable enough, maybe even a little chilly. Strange since Yugi was wearing winter clothes. As he walked, he started to see people along the river. Most of them were on boats and too far away to answer his calls audibly. They seemed kind enough though, some even waving to him when they could. Yugi continued to walk, and the closer to the city he got, the more people there were along the river banks. No matter how hard he tried; Yugi couldn't get a word out of them. It was the same every time. At first, the people would happily wave to him, but when he spoke, they'd stiffen and run towards the city.

"Hey wait!" Yugi yelled to the last group of people to run away from him. He'd chase them, but then he'd really look like the bad guy. What was even weirder was that no two-people looked like they came from the same place. One person would be clearly Egyptian, even wearing ancient Egyptian clothing, and the next person would have a Boston accent and be wearing relatively modern dress.

Eventually, Yugi got tired of this song and dance and stopped by the river. He reached into the cool water and splashed his face, half hoping it would wake him up. As he looked into the water, he heard horse hooves behind him. He turned to see a tall Egyptian man riding a chariot come up from the city.

"Are you Yugi Muto?" The man asked.

"Err, yes?" Yugi said as he got up from the river bed.

"Get in the chariot." The man commanded, turning the horses back towards the city.

Yugi stood there dumbstruck. He had never seen this man before. Aren't dreams only supposed to use people that he knew? Yugi then looked closer at the man and was surprised by his light blue eyes. Those at least looked familiar, but Yugi couldn't place where

The man didn't seem like he was going to give any more info. This was the first person to talk to Yugi in this crazy place. It was either him or walking. Yugi hopped into the chariot and hoped for the best. The man immediately ordered the horses to run, and they followed without hesitation.

"Woah." Yugi yelped. He wasn't prepared for the speed. It seemed too fast for ordinary horses. He then looked back to the stranger who had picked him up.

"Uh, thanks," Yugi said. No answer. "Ok, so not a talker. That's fine... Where are we going?" Yugi asked. The ground below them was now a weird crystalline road, made of a material Yugi couldn't name. "Maybe that was a dumb question, the city obviously… can you tell me where this place is?" No answer. "Can you at least tell me your name? I'm not going to stop until you give me an answer." Yugi grumbled. Still, there was silence. Yugi was about to start another string of question when the man sighed.

"Aknadin."

"What?"

"Aknadin, my name is Aknadin." The man said. Yugi exhaled. Finally, an answer.

"Nice to meet you, Aknadin." More silence. "I suppose I did say I'd stop after an answer, but your name doesn't help me figure out what's going on," Yugi said as the two went into the city gates. Yugi gasped at the soldiers guarding the place. They were nearly nine feet tall and wore decorative jackal masks, or maybe it was their head? Either way, a shiver leaped down his spine as the guardians silently looked down at him as the chariot passed through the city gates.

The city in front of Yugi was bustling with people, all completely different from the next. They all must have been very busy, as each person ignored each other. When the chariot passed through, some would stop to wave at the two. Aknadin did not wave back. He kept his eyes forward. Yugi gave each person a hesitative wave as it was rude not to. That thought then crept into his mind again. He quickly shook it away. This was not the time for that kind of negative thinking. He had to figure out where he was and fast.

Finally, the chariot stopped in front of a massive palace, a palace that Yugi had to force himself not to recognize

"Please follow me," Aknadin said as he hurried Yugi through the great entryway. They immediately took a hard-right turn. Aknadin pushed a single stone in the wall, and a passageway opened. Without a word he pulled Yugi inside and continued to lead him through the winding hallways.

Even though this place was lit only by torchlight, Yugi could still see the craftsmanship that went into the architecture. He stared at the dazzling décor that shown along the way. Every wall and column was decorated with ancient gold and jewels. These were just the secret passageways they were going through. He couldn't help but wonder what the actual rooms of this palace looked like.

They finally stopped in front of a mural of the sun shining on a farmer's crops. The painting was expertly done, but Yugi couldn't help but wonder why all this work was done to paint such a mundane scene. Aknadin stopped and took in a deep breath. Yugi could see he was worried. Before they could do more, a voice stopped the two.

"Aknadin! What are you doing?" The two turned to see a familiar woman standing behind them.

"Ishizu?!" Yugi gasped. The women jumped at Yugi's voice. She stared at him with wide eyes.

"Isis," Aknadin said. "The order is to bring Yugi Muto immediately to the palace if he should ever arrive." The women shook her head. The two glanced at Yugi, then started talking to each other in a language he did not understand.

Yugi leaned up against the wall and looked to Aknadin then to the women. 'Ok, so Ishizu was here. That gave more points to the dream theory, but then who was this guy? Where were they even?' As Yugi mulled over his situation that thought from earlier came up again. While Yugi wanted to ignore it, but it became more and more plausible with every minute.

Yugi looked up to the mural. The picture was well crafted, but something was off. The sun was in the wrong place for where the shadows were below. This immediately got his puzzle-solving brain's attention. He then noticed that the stone the sun was painted on was shallower than the rest of the rocks in the wall. He turned back to the two Egyptians; they were still speaking in another language. They only ever briefly looked to Yugi. He then turned back to the sun. The more he looked at it, the more it looked like the sun's stone could be shifted. Slowly, he reached up and moved the sun to the correct place in the sky. Nothing happened. The two's talk was now turning into an argument. Yugi sighed and leaned back on the wall.

Suddenly the wall started to split, right where Yugi was leaning. Yugi's arms flailed as he fell back into a brightly lit room. Yugi looked up to see a courtroom of upside-down people and strange creatures. Yugi quickly stood up. He was beside a great throne surrounded by different people and, much to his disbelief, duel monsters of every kind. Not just duel spirits, duel monsters with bodies and everything.

"I have to be dreaming," Yugi said to himself as he looked around. They were all staring at him with wide eyes. Movement on the throne then attracted his attention.

Yugi turned to see Atem standing up from his throne. The Pharaoh's eyes were just as wide as the audiences', maybe even wider. Yugi froze in place, was this really?

"Yu-Yugi?"

"Atem!" Yugi cried. Without a second thought, he rushed forward and picked up his dear friend in a great hug. Atem happily hugged back. The two stood there drinking in this moment. It had been eighteen years since they had last seen each other. Eighteen years.

Yugi pulled away and looked down at the young pharaoh. Atem was still wearing his ancient royal clothing, but his body was like when he shared a mind with Yugi. He hadn't changed a bit. Yugi could not believe this. Atem grinned back up at Yugi, clearly not believing this either. Then he stopped. Atem's whole demeanor fell, a wave of sadness crashed over the pharaoh. That was when the thought Yugi had been pushing out of his mind all day finally stuck. This was the afterlife, Yugi Muto was dead.


	5. Moving Day

A ten-year-old boy with dark spiky hair jumped off the bus. He waved to the bus driver that had driven him to school for the last semester. She was a kind lady that always said hello and goodbye to the students.

"Bye AJ, I hope your move goes well. And if you ever come back to America, make sure to drop by and say hi." She smiled. AJ nodded and ran to his house.

It was a sunny day with clear blue skies. Perfect day to start winter vacation. AJ jumped onto a low standing cement fence and continued to run. Finally, free from school! No more homework, no more teachers, no more bullies, just free time. Not that he didn't like school. He was actually pretty good at it; his grades were proof of that. His teacher even said he had gotten his mother's mind. If only that were true.

AJ wished many times that his current parents were his birth parents. His birth parents were somewhere in Egypt. He didn't remember them. They had left him at the orphanage when he was a baby with nothing but a blanket and the most common name in Egypt. Thankfully he got the much cooler nickname of AJ when he was adopted. AJ sometimes wondered where his birth parents were and if they ever thought about him. Oh well, sucks to be them. They lost out on the amazingness that was him.

Instead of those losers, when AJ turned five he was adopted by the best parents any kid could ask for. A cool master of technology as a mom, and the King of Games as a dad. Many of AJ's friends still didn't believe him when he told them that fact. It didn't help that his dad had been gone almost the whole year. He had been doing important things for the game he released, but most of his time was spent doing things for his title as the King of Games. It had been like that since AJ was young. Not that AJ minded, this year he had just been extra busy.

"Hey AJ!" AJ turned to see a clingy, young boy from his neighborhood run up behind him.

"Blitz! What are you doing here?" AJ asked after slowing down so Blitz could catch up to him.

"I won't let you leave me without another goodbye," Blitz said.

"But I already gave you three goodbyes."

"Still not enough. Why do you have to leave?" Blitz huffed. He tried to jump up to the cement fence but misjudged his jump and ended up on his butt.

"You ok?" AJ asked. Blitz pushed away any gestures of help and stood up. He stayed on the sidewalk and smiled back to AJ

"I'm good. But really, why are you moving to Japan? It's so far away."

"Because my dad's there and it's the Duel Monster capital of the world. Why wouldn't I want to go there?" AJ grinned, making sure to hide any sign of worry. He had actually asked this question many times to his parents.

"Your dad, the game designer and the King of Games, right?" Blitz sarcastically said. AJ stomped in annoyance.

"Yes! He's there right now. He's probably already got our house ready and is dueling the pants off everyone there." AJ huffed.

"I'm just messing with ya. Geez, you take things too seriously."

AJ jumped from the fence to the lawn of his front yard. Out in the driveway was the moving truck. He was used to seeing men shuffling back and forth from the truck to the house, but now there was no one. They must have finished early.

"Uh oh." AJ said, "I hope that they didn't accidentally pack my duel disk! I thought they would take longer." AJ rushed towards the house. As he got closer to the door, he started to hear an ear-splitting scream.

"Ouch! Is that your baby sister?" Blitz asked as he plugged his ears.

"That mirror shattering call can only be Chell." AJ groaned.

The door was left wide open. Nothing too strange about that since the movers kept it open. What was weird was the was baby carrier right by the door with the newborn baby inside.

"Come on, Chell. What's up?" AJ asked as he bent down to look at the newborn. His parents had recently adopted her from South Korea. Chell reached out to her brother but continued crying. AJ unbuckled the baby and picked her up. "What's up, sis? Why are you crying?" he sighed as he looked around. It wasn't like mom just to leave her by an open door.

AJ and Blitz then heard sounds coming from farther in the house. They walked through the empty rooms and came to the kitchen. A laptop was set up on the kitchen counter with a news report going. Most of the moving crew were huddled around it. AJ looked up to see his mom talking frantically on her cellphone. Her forehead was covered in sweat, and her eyes were red.

"…It has completely ripped the city in two and is still pulling. No word on what has caused this catastrophe…" The news reporter announced. His mother looked up to see AJ staring slack-jawed at the report. She immediately put down her phone and ran over to the boys.

"Mom, what was that report-"

"I need you upstairs now. I'll take Chell." His mother quickly said as she started to push the boys out of the kitchen.

Blitz's cell phone then started ringing. He looked nervously to AJ as he stepped out of the house. AJ could hear the worried voice of Blitz's mother on the phone.

The was nothing upstairs, just like the rest of the house. The movers had already taken everything but a small pile of essentials the family had moved aside. To AJ's happiness, he saw his duel disk in a pile along with his mother's disk.

"Thank goodness." AJ breathed as he kneeled and took out the card deck from the disk. His dad had asked him to watch his special deck while he was traveling. This was his sentimental deck. AJ quickly flipped through to find the original Gandora and Dark Magician. He breathed a sigh of relief to see that they were still there.

"Please wait up here AJ. Do whatever homework you have and…and… please just stay here." His mom pleaded. AJ looked to her in surprise. He wanted to tell his mother that it was winter vacation, and he had no homework, but her face stopped him. He had never seen his mother like this. Pleading was not her style. She took the still crying Chell and went back downstairs. AJ slowly got to his feet. He held the deck close to his chest as he walked to his room.

Just as everywhere else there was nothing in AJ's room. He slumped against one of the walls. What to do, what to do. His ears then perked up. Sounds traveled better now that there was less furniture to stop it. AJ put his ear to the floor and listened. The words were muffled. It took a few moments for him to piece together what he had heard.

"Seto Kaiba was seen walking away from a wrecked car with his brother over his shoulder. No news if his brother is still ali..." Seto? Is that the same scary guy AJ had to be extra polite to when he came over for dinner? He was by the disaster?

"I think he'll have to make a public announcement soon. Rumors are starting to circulate that a KaibaCorp reactor was-" What was this? Where was this?! Then AJ heard it, Domino City.

AJ pulled away from the floor as if it was on fire. He quickly pulled into a ball in the corner of his room. His little body started to be racked with sobs. AJ held his father's deck tighter. Domino City, right where his dad was. His brain kept telling him that his dad was too strong to die like that. He had to live through this one. He had to.


	6. An Awkward but Needed Conversation

Atem breathed in deep. His looked up to the golden set of doors that led to a guest room. He had been pacing in front of this room for what felt like hours. Yugi was inside sleeping. While it was usually strange for spirits to rest, Yugi had died very recently. New spirits tended to keep earthy needs for a while until they could accept their deaths. Yugi didn't even seem to realize he was in the afterlife until he saw Atem's reaction back in the throne room.

Atem's face scrunched up. He should have held in his emotions better. Seeing his unhappy face had led Yugi to realize where he was. All color had left Yugi's eyes. He kept staring at the floor; nothing seemed to get a reaction out of him. Atem's audience was getting antsy, so the pharaoh had Isis and Aknadin bring Yugi to the nearest room. Atem sped through the remaining citizens' complaints and raced to check on Yugi. In retrospect, Atem couldn't remember anything he had agreed to at that time. He would have to ask the scribes to repeat what the complaints were later.

Atem stopped once again in front of the golden doors. He had thought about going inside many times, but he stopped himself every time. What would he do when he was in there? Watch Yugi sleep? He shook his head and started pacing again. It had been eighteen years since Yugi summoned Atem during the fight with Diva. Now that Atem thought about it, eighteen years was almost his entire lifespan if you did not count the years being a spirit. Atem used to fear that when Yugi came to the afterlife, he wouldn't even remember the pharaoh. Mana pointed out that Yugi was not the type to forget a friend, but what should have been a silly worry still ate at him. Atem could take that small fear though. He didn't want to meet his partner again for many, many more years. Yugi was still much too young to live the long, happy life Atem wanted for him.

Atem stopped again at the door, his fists clenched. What happened to Yugi?

Atem snapped to attention when he heard movement inside the room. Yugi moaned his usual morning groanings. The Pharaoh reached out to the doorknob again. Should he? No, Yugi might still need time to register being dea-… being in the afterlife. What he needed to do was find Shimon or maybe even Mana. They would know how to help Yugi adjust. Atem was good at commanding speeches, not the emotional support Yugi needed now.

Atem started running. When he turned a corner, he came face to face with Mahad.

"Mahad! Have you seen Shinmon anywhere?" Atem asked. The spirit of the Dark Magician looked down on the Pharaoh.

"Is Yugi awake?" Mahad asked.

"Yes, that is why I am looking for Shinmon. Yugi is going to need support with what he has to face." Atem said frantically. To his surprise, the corner of Mahad's lips turned up a bit.

"Then why are you not in there?" Mahad asked.

"I doubt I am the person Yugi wants to see right now. I will just remind him that he is- that he is in the afterlife." Atem answered back. Mahad shook his head.

"You think he'd rather see a complete stranger than you?"

Atem could think of no words in reply. During the pharaoh's silence, Mahad grabbed his shoulders and turned him around. The priest then started pushing Atem back to Yugi's room.

"What are you doing?!" Atem demanded.

"Doing my duty as your other best friend. It is not like you to panic like this." Mahad smiled as he brought Atem to the golden doors again.

The Pharaoh took another deep breath. Panicking was something he prided himself on never doing."I did not panic." Atem said. The two stood in front of the doors. Atem's body could not seem to move.

"Those doorknobs are not Medusa heads. You have to go in there." Mahad patted him on the back and stepped away from the doors.

Atem nodded to his old friend. He straightened out his cloak and reached out for the door. He grabbed the handle but stopped. Who was the Yugi on the other side of that door? Yugi's hug in the throne room was proof that he still cared for Atem, but then again, Yugi would probably hug anyone he had not seen in years. The length of eighteen years seemed to stretch out in front of Atem.

Mahad cleared his throat. Atem looked back to the guardian. It had been thousands of years before Atem met Mahad again. Despite the gap, Mahad was still his loyal best friend. In fact, all of Atem's old friends were still by his side. This thought gave him the strength to push the doors open.

Atem scanned the room as he came in. Yugi was sitting on the edge of a couch looking out a nearby window at the bright day. He seemed so drained of color as he solemnly looked at the new land. Yugi then turned to the door. A tired smile spread across his face.

"Hey there Atem. How are you holding up?" Yugi said in a quiet voice. Atem stared at the man sitting in front of him. His heart was split between elation and utter sadness.

"How am I holding up?" Atem repeated as he stepped in and closed the door. "I think that question is better for you to answer," he said as he put on a small smile. Yugi sighed and rubbed his head.

"Well enough I suppose. Not better than anyone else at least. How are you supposed to react to finding out that you died?" he chuckled. Yugi's smile faltered for a moment. Atem immediately noticed the smile that replaced it was fake.

"But I think I'm past the worst of it," Yugi added.

Atem slowly walked closer to the couch, truly not knowing what to say. "Do you know what happened?" Atem asked, deciding to try and keep to the facts.

"No, I just ended up outside the city where the all-so-talkative Aknadin picked me up," Yugi said as he flopped back on the couch. Atem silently snickered at this.

"I hope he did not give you too much trouble."

"None at all. In fact, he gave me absolutely nothing. I do not have a clue of where I am." Yugi then turned to Atem. "So, where are we?"

Atem bit his lip. Where to start?

"You are in the afterlife, the desert/Egyptian part to be exact." Atem eventually answered. Yugi sat back up, clearly interested. "There are about as many parts to the afterlife as there are beliefs of the afterlife, each with their own world and laws. This part is mostly for the souls of Egypt and those with a spiritual connection to it." he continued. "And it's also a bit of the Duel Monsters afterlife. Their Supreme King... left a few years ago and they have been coming to me with their problems until he gets back."

"You are pharaoh over all of it?" Yugi asked, raising an eyebrow. "I thought you'd finally get some rest in the afterlife."

Atem shook his head. "Only for a thousand more years. Then I pass off the role to another Paradise leader, and I can go back to relaxing." Yugi's face still showed confusion.

"Paradise… Leader?" he asked. Atem was taken aback by these questions. Usually, when a soul came to the afterlife, they knew how the world worked. There wasn't more to learned once you died.

"You know the journey you go on once you get here?" Atem tried. Yugi shook his head.

'Odd.' Atem thought. Every new spirit he met at least knew of the journey. Once you accepted death, you knew where you had to go and how to get there.

"When a person dies they go on a personal journey to get to their paradise. This journey is shaped by each person's beliefs and life choices. It can be an easy jog or a crawl going through many parts of the afterlife. There are even some who can never finish their journey because of their wrongdoings in life. A paradise soul is someone that found their paradise. They can be called on to rule the trial lands for a time." Atem said as he gestured out at the endless desert.

"Oh, wait, that means you found your paradise?" Yugi said happily. Atem couldn't help but smile back. He recognized the real grin on Yugi's face.

"Yes, I did not even need to go on a journey here in the afterlife. My journey with you and our friends in the living world counted." Atem said as he sat next to Yugi.

"That's great! You don't know how long I feared that I had sent you to some purgatory or to nothing." Yugi looked down to the millennium puzzle around Atem's neck. "Though, I stopped worrying as much about that after you saved us from the Zorc-Diva monster." He then reached over and gently grasped the familiar puzzle. After the Diva incident, Atem had taken the puzzle back to the afterlife with him. He had never taken it off since. Though it was once a prison to him. It was also one of the few physical connections he still had to his modern friends.

Atem looked to Yugi's face. It was showing signs of sadness mixed with nostalgia. Atem was sure Yugi was thinking of his friends and family.

"You sure you don't know what happened?" Atem asked.

"No, I keep looking over my memories, but I can't figure it out. I was talking to my father, and then everything went white." Yugi answered after dropping the puzzle. Atem's back stiffened briefly at the mention of Yugi's father. Yugi must have noticed it because he softly chuckled.

"Still haven't gotten over your dislike of my dad, huh?" Yugi smiled.

"I do not dislike your father. I simply did not approve of him constantly being gone." Atem quickly said. His first "meeting" with Yugi's father was not the best. His father had called to tell the family he could not make it to Yugi's birthday, again. All because of a business meeting. Atem's feeling of the man went downhill with every subsequent call. Atem did his best to hide those feelings from Yugi. Knowing the Pharaoh's dislike of the man would not make Yugi any happier about his father's absence. Apparently, he hadn't hidden them well enough.

"Oh, don't worry. Joey shared those sentiments, but he was less secretive about it. I suppose his own experiences with his dad made him sensitive to mine." Yugi sighed.

Atem then looked out the window to the vast desert surrounding this oasis. Atem remembered when Solomon Muto came through this city on his journey five years ago. He had been covered in sand and wounds from his last trial, but he still happily stopped and chattered with Atem. He had made sure to catch the pharaoh up on everything before he left.

"You are a father now, right?" Atem asked. He remembered Yugi's many thoughts of being a father when he was younger. He had spoken about it multiple times with Atem when the two were alone.

"Oh yes, I got two of the greatest kids. A ten-year-old named AJ and a little girl called Chell." And an odd crooked smile spread across Yugi's face "One of them even ended up being named after you."

"Me?!"

"Yep, after you went back to the afterlife all your history was suddenly unearthed with your name and everything. An ancient pharaoh that was a master of Duel Monsters? The discovery spread like wildfire. It became a trendy name in Egypt. Especially when we adopted the boy. Of course, he's not a fan of his name. He says he doesn't want to be remembered for, and I quote, 'some dead guys achievements.' So, we call him A.J."

"A.J?"

"My wife and I tell him it's because his middle name's James… But honestly, we started calling him that because we were thinking Atem Jr. Don't tell him that or he'll really hate his name." Yugi grinned. But as soon as this happiness came, it disappeared. Yugi's smile fell, and this time he did not try to hide it.

"You know, this last year I wasn't home very often. I was always gone trying to balance being the King of Games with my game coming out." Yugi said in a monotone voice. "Just like my own dad... That's how AJ's going to remember me, isn't it? Little Chell's not even going to know me." Yugi went silent.

Atem watched his old partner. Even after all these years of growth, Yugi still resembled the same small boy he promised to protect. During his four years as a spirit, there were many situations that Atem could not duel and make better. Loss of family, absent fathers, Atem's own cracked sanity and pride; Yugi had to be the sole one to bare these challenges. During those times, the spirit felt utterly helpless. As a spirit, he could not physically comfort or even touch anything. As the person he was, he could not find the words to ease his partner's worries. All he could do was be by Yugi's side. Atem found himself with the same problem now, but he had one advantage this time.

Atem reached across and embraced Yugi. It was an awkward hug thanks to their new size difference. Yugi was much bigger, and Atem still had his teenage body. Despite this, a hug was precisely what Yugi needed.

"They are going to remember you as the amazing man that you are. Not just your children. All your friends and even enemies will remember you as the kind, determined, and slightly naive Yugi Muto. I know, I've talked to a few of them." Atem beamed. Yugi smiled back, and he pulled Atem into a tighter hug. "Geh! squish- squishing me!" Atem choked out. Even dead, Atem could still feel the pressure of the hug.

"Oh sorry, I've actually gotten that a lot recently." Yugi apologized as he let Atem go. Yugi got up from the couch as Atem readjusted his puzzle and cloak.

"Well, I think It's time I look around here. Maybe I'll see some of those friends and enemies you talked about." Yugi said. Atem nodded and lead Yugi out of the room.

"What about this game I've heard you made?" Atem asked as the two walked along the golden hallways. Yugi's eyes lit up.

"I'm glad you asked. As you know, I liked the part of Duel Monsters that has you connecting with duel spirits and specific cards. Then one day I thought, what if there was a whole game about connecting and growing together with monsters? Then, what if they could fit in your pocket? I immediately drew up some designs and…" Yugi proceeded on with such passion that Atem had no choice but to stop and give Yugi his full attention. As he looked at Yugi's excitement, Atem knew. This was the Yugi he had grown up with. This was one of his dearest friends.

Yugi continued telling Atem about everything, his game, his family, how everyone else was doing. Yugi went on for so long that Atem didn't have time to ponder something he had noticed when they were hugging. Atem for a split second thought he heard a heartbeat.


	7. Mehen

You know, being dead was not that bad. Yugi had been in worse situation, like being trapped by Dartz or stuck in the Millennium Puzzle. Here the weather was always perfect, there was no rush for him to do anything, he even got to physically meet duel monsters. So why couldn't he convince himself he was dead? Everyone said that once you accepted your death you would no longer feel earthly needs. It had been nearly a week and there was no doubt in his mind that he was dead. If he needed a reminder, he just had to wait for Kuriboh to bound up to him looking for pats. Yet, his stomach still rumbled and he needed to "rest" every once in a while. As Atem had told Yugi when they shared a mind, spirits don't sleep, they rest. Going into a coma like-state without dreams. Yugi honestly couldn't tell the difference.

"I really have no clue Yugi." Mana sighed. "You've taken to being in the afterlife faster than most new souls. Yet you're still stuck in the non-acceptance stage." Mana had been kind enough to keep Yugi company during the times Atem worked. Mana was one of the few people that could see Yugi and his friends during the Dark RPG. It was quite nice to get to know the spunky girl when the world wasn't in danger.

Yugi and Mana were currently sitting along the shore of the river that went through the city. Spirits were dashing all around the two. A few stopped to wave at Yugi. Even then, it was because they thought he was the pharaoh of the region. Once they realized their mistake they continued on without another word.

"They sure have places to go," Yugi spoke after one nearly ran over him. Mana nodded.

"Yes, this city is a nice resting spot for people's journeys. You get a nice roof over your head and there are no trials here."

"And apparently it's the perfect place to complain too," Yugi said gesturing to the palace where Atem was currently dealing with a mile-long line of complaints. Mana giggled.

"Even in the afterlife, creatures will find things to criticize. Atem is one of the few paradise leaders to actually listens to said complaints, so he gets angry spirits coming from all over."

"I see why the role of ruling this place has to be on a turn system. I don't think anyone would want to deal with that forever." Yugi said. His gut then made a loud gurgling sound. Yugi immediately reached down and clutched his stomach. The hunger was becoming painful. Mana turned to him with a hint of worry in her face.

"I'm sorry we haven't found anything edible for you. It's just something we haven't had to worry about before. It usually only takes a day or two for most people to accept their death." Mana tried to joke. Yugi gave her a kind smile as he stood up.

"It's fine, I'm sure once my body realizes it's not dying of hunger I'll accept my death." Thankfully the water from the river seemed to sate any imaginary thirst Yugi had. The food though was not something one could get. Yugi sighed as he looked down at the river. He could see it go forward for miles. It really was a beautiful walk. Maybe he should finally see what was outside this city.

"Thanks for sitting with me Mana. I think I'm going to take a walk along the river if you don't mind." Yugi said. Mana's eyes grew wide for a split second. But she quickly put on a smile and jumped in front of Yugi.

"All alone?" Mana pouted. "The city really is the best place to hang out. Out there are trials for travelers and they're no fun to get wrapped up in." Yugi was surprised by how much force she put behind her words.

"Oh, well I wasn't planning on walking that far out, but if you say so," Yugi said with a raised eyebrow.

"I know what will get your mind off food. A game!" Mana declared. This immediately got Yugi's attention.

"What game?"

"It's a game with marbles called Mehen."

"Wait, I remember that game in my grandfather's journals. No archeologist could figure out how it was played." Yugi said.

"Well lucky for you, I am a somewhat of a master of it. Prepare to get your butt somewhat kicked." Yugi grinned at Mana as she pulled him to a table.

* * *

Yugi flicked his marble across the grooves of the carved coiled snake and moved his piece accordingly. This was the third game the two had played with neither of them winning yet. Yugi was getting better at this game, despite Mana's attempts at "helping". While she was able to explain the rules just fine, putting them into action was confusing. Even the magician's apprentice was having troubles. She kept second guessing herself and restarting the turn.

"Yes, that looks about right. You managed to roll the marble through three coils so you moved…wait… maybe you should have moved piece nine instead of six." She stammered.

"But I thought I was still in the double zone?" Yugi asked.

"Yes, but my piece is in its own double zone. I think there's a rule about that canceling it out? I need to see the rules again." Yugi rested his head on his hand as Mana reached under the table again for the rules. She has played the game for thousands of years, why all the second-guessing? Oh well, this was still quite fun. Yugi could not help but enjoy a game with friends.

As Yugi looked across the city his eyes rested on a very familiar face.

"Seto?" Yugi straightened up to get a better look. Coming into the city on an extravagantly decorated chariot was the tall brown-haired man with light blue eyes. Wearing his signature better-than-you expression. The only difference from Seto Kaiba was this man was wearing Egyptian clothing.

Mana looked up from the table and saw Seto too. A wide grin spread across her face as she turned around and wildly waved at Seto.

"About time you got here, Slacker Magician! Was coming back here in a timely fashion really that hard for you?" Mana yelled then turned back to Yugi. "He's been off doing some work for Atem. Don't worry, this is our Seto. We've had no word on whether your Seto is here yet." Yugi sighed with relief as Seto stopped his chariot. He strode over to the two, his eyes staring daggers into Yugi.

"What are you still doing here?" Seto nearly barked at Yugi. Yugi blinked.

"Playing Mehen?" Yugi tried.

"Oh Seto, don't be so rude. This is Yugi, not Atem. Don't worry Atem is working right now. It's not like you ever want him to do anything else." Mana grumbled, but Seto didn't take his eyes off Yugi.

"I know that. Why is he still here? He should have gone on his journey at this point." Seto growled. He slammed his hands on the table making the marbles roll away. Yugi's mouth dried out. He hadn't met this Seto personally yet. He only knew this was Atem's cousin and the one that ruled Egypt after the shadow games were locked away.

"Err, hello to you too. I didn't know there was a time limit for spiritual journeys." Yugi said honestly.

"There's not Yugi. Besides, you wouldn't even know where to go. He hasn't accepted his death yet Seto!" Mana stressed. Seto huffed and pulled away from the two.

"I'm sure," Seto said, not even trying to hide his sarcasm. Yugi's stomach suddenly made another loud gurgle. Seto's annoyance was briefly replaced with confusion. He shook his head and turned to Mana.

"May we talk in private?" Seto said in a much quieter voice. Mana frown deepened as she walked with Seto. They went around a corner to be out of earshot. Yugi sat back in his chair.

'That was a nice Seto hello. Looks like Kaiba's tact goes back a few thousand years.' Yugi thought. Despite that, he was worried about something. Something having to do with Yugi.

Yugi looked at the spirits around him. None even flinched at the commotion earlier. Yugi then picked up the piece of paper with the rules on it. The wind was blowing slightly, just enough to "take" the paper from Yugi. The wind blew it to the corner Seto and Mana went around. Yugi being the non-litter he was, raced after the paper. He quietly picked up the rules and stood as close as he could get to the conversation on the other side of the wall.

"What was that about?!" Mana demanded.

"I thought he was acting. All to stay here and not face whatever trials he has out there." Seto answered gruffly.

"Well, he's not! Yugi would never do something like that."

"Now I know that! Have you ever heard a dead person's stomach growl like that? It is not normal." Seto then sighed. "When I got the message that Yugi had finally died, I thought I was coming back to take the throne while Atem went with Yugi on his journey." Yugi leaned in closer.

"He can do that?"

"Not sure, but it is something Atem has planned for a while… but that does not matter at the moment! I could care less about the throne, I'm worried what Yugi still being here will do to Atem." Seto growled.

"Trust me, Yugi wants to move on too, but nothing is happening." Mana hissed. This was followed by silence. "Do you think he's...?"

"No, only one person has ever made it here alive and he did it on purpose. He had to have millions of dollars of research and technology behind him too. I doubt someone like Yugi could do this on accident." More silence, then Seto started again. "There's something else. Things out there in the trial lands have been getting…strange."

"Strange?"

Yugi held his breath. Then out of the side of his eye, he saw a brown blur rush towards him. Before he could react Kuriboh came bounding up and jumped into his arms. Yugi tried to smile and keep the duel monster quiet. Both of which were failing.

"Please bud. It's good to see you too, but I need you to be quiet." Yugi whispered. Kuriboh did not seem to like being shushed. The monster looked around and saw the paper in his hand. Kuriboh swiftly grabbed the page and raced away.

"Hey! We still need that!" Yugi yelled as he ran after the monster. He soon found himself being led out of the city. Kuriboh would look back every few bounces to make sure his master was still behind him. He even stopped a few times for Yugi to catch his breath.

"Geez, I thought I was healthier than this. Just so hungry..." Yugi gasped. He looked up to the furry monster "Where are you taking me Kuriboh?" the puffball continued to bounce up and down, waiting for Yugi to follow him again. "You seem to know where you're going…" Yugi looked back at the city. Seto and Mana would know at this point that he was listening in on them and he doubted Kuriboh would take him somewhere dangerous... Yugi continued to trail Kuriboh out of the city.

The two ran farther into the desert until they came to a green patch of ground. Vibrant flowers and lush trees bloomed around an oasis. There were other duel monsters here, all playing and resting. Yugi slumped against one of the large trees. Did Kuriboh really just bring him all the way out here for some pretty foliage? Yugi looked closer at the plants. Maybe he could eat this? But just like all other potential food, as soon as the thought entered Yugi's mind the plant swayed away. It grew completely out of his reach.

"Of course." Yugi sighed, then he perked up. A very familiar laugh danced through the air. Yugi slowly got to his feet and pushed through the plant growth. Near the edge of the water sat a young man with long silver hair playing with some duel monsters.

"Pegasus?" Yugi gasped. The man turned around in surprise. This man looked much younger than the Pegasus Yugi knew. Yet, he still hid his left eye with his hair.

"Yugi boy!" Pegasus sang. Yugi tumbled out of the brush as Pegasus got to his feet. The two looked over each other as the duel monsters crowded around.

"The afterlife is wondrous isn't it?" Pegasus smiled as he patted Kuriboh.

"Yes, it's one of the few places where you're both excited and unhappy to see familiar faces." Yugi laughed.


	8. Pegasus

Pegasus smiled back at Yugi. He then turned to the crowd of monsters around.

"I always had an idea that my cards had their own spirits, especially after Dartz. But I didn't think it was this literal." Almost like that was the duel monsters' cue, they all bunched around Pegasus in a big hug. This made him laugh again. Yugi grinned at the monsters' obvious affection. Yugi supposed he'd be appreciative too if someone made a way for him to make an impact in another dimension, even if it was through a card game.

"Yes, this has always been one part of duel monsters I could never recreate in my own games. These spirits can bring their own power and personality to a game, if you can see them. I even used Winged Kuriboh once to time travel if you'd believe it." Yugi grinned as Kuriboh came bounding over to him.

"Honestly after everything, time traveling using a card spirit is not too farfetched," Pegasus said as he sat back down near the pool's edge. Yugi gaze quickly darted to Pegasus's left eye, it was still missing. Pegasus must have noticed Yugi's attention because he briefly reached up and felt that side of his face.

"I believe I still have a few more steps of my journey before I earn this back," Pegasus said nonchalantly. Yugi quickly looked away, feeling a bit embarrassed that he was caught staring.

"So, you've already started your journey huh? How long have you been here?" Yugi asked.

"I'm not quite sure, there is really not a good way to tell time here. I would guess about half a week." Pegasus shrugged.

"I've been here about a week... I think. Or at least I've needed to sleep about six times." Yugi answered. Pegasus turned to Yugi with an interested face.

"You needed to sleep?"

"Sorry, not sleep, rest. Atem has been on me about using the correct wording. He says it might help me better accept my death." Yugi sighed.

"Ahh, the spirit from the Millennium Puzzle. I heard he was made the Paradise leader here. I'm sure he was ecstatic to see you again." Pegasus said.

Yugi shrugged. "He was, then the reality hit him on what me being here meant." he smiled but shook his head. "When we shared a body, he was always a little overprotective. Always making sure I took the safest path to school or constantly reminding me to do my homework. And you know what? Even here he still is trying to mom me. This is the first time I've been able to slip out of the city. I think he's trying to make up for daring to let me die." Yugi chuckled. Pegasus looked closer at the King of Games, studying him.

"Were you in Domino City when you…?" Pegasus asked. Yugi quickly turned to face Pegasus. He turned so fast the Kuriboh was thrown off of Yugi's lap with an unhappy _kurri!_

"Yes actually, did something happen there?" Yugi frantically asked. Pegasus took in a deep breath.

"Something absolutely did, it's how I and many others died." Pegasus looked into Yugi's eyes with absolute seriousness. "You know the Ener-D tower that KaibCorp setup to collect duel energy? It…I can only describe as exploded. I heard others saying it was an earthquake plus a tsunami that did the damage, but I knew what I saw. That reactor caused a massive wave of energy that split the entire city. I was visiting it when I was seriously wounded in the blast. I heard them calling the event the Zero Reverse. A few days later I…" Pegasus shook his head. "I woke up in the afterlife with a large group of other citizens from Domino city."

Yugi stared at Pegasus, clinging on to his every word. An explosion, that was how he died. The Zero Reverse. He let that sink in making sure to repeat it in his mind... Nope, he still felt the ever-growing hole in his stomach. Why couldn't he accept his death?!

"Did you see anyone I would know?" Yugi quietly asked.

Pegasus laid back and looked up into the sky. "Let's see, I haven't exactly kept up with your life so I wouldn't know who you'd be looking for… I believe I've seen Mai Valentine, Joey's younger sister, that dark-haired boy that followed you around during Duelist Kingdom, Duke Devlin, and that rough bodyguard of Kaiba's… I believe that's it. Remember I came here three days after the explosion so I didn't see the people that came in before."

"No, that's enough for now." Yugi sighed. This was getting a bit too grim for Yugi's liking. Kuriboh who had been angrily bouncing into Yugi for throwing him off stopped. He must have noticed Yugi's mood shift because he then slowly curled up to Yugi and started purring.

"I am sorry, I didn't mean to make you upset," Pegasus said. Yugi shook his head.

"Don't worry about it. I'm the one that asked you. I should be apologizing for making you relive those horrible events. Thanks for keeping me updated." Yugi said. He then stood up while still holding Kuriboh. "Now I can get excited about meeting those friends soon. I haven't exactly kept up with some of those names. This will be my chance to meet them again." Yugi smiled. Pegasus seemed taken aback by Yugi's reaction. A smile soon spread across his face too.

"That's what I like about you Yugi-boy. Even here in literal death, you still find reasons to smile." Pegasus said as he stood up too. "I'm excited to meet someone too in this afterlife. I've been racing through my journey just to see her." Pegasus put his hands together and looked across the water. "I know my beloved Cecelia has already found her paradise and when I finish my journey, I will be joining her," Pegasus announced. All the duel monsters around clapped whatever limbs they could to show their support for the card creator.

"These duel monsters here have been kind enough to keep me company as I go along. They always look out for me." Pegasus smiled at his crowd.

Yugi tilted his head. "Really? You can have others on your journey? So maybe Atem can follow me." Yugi whispered to himself.

"Pardon?"

"Nothing. So, can they help you during your trials?" Yugi asked. Pegasus's body went rigid for a moment. He quickly recomposed himself and readjusted the tie he was wearing.

"Well, you know those trials are for only the sinner. I take the brunt of the challenge, but these creatures have been here to cheer me on and protect me where they can. I believe you know the power of a cheering squad." Pegasus said. Yugi nodded.

Pegasus must have gone through some tough trials before this. It sadly made sense to Yugi. This game creator was not always the nicest of guys, though he tried to make up for it later in his life. Yugi could still remember the fear Pegasus had caused him and his friends by stealing peoples' souls, especially his grandfather's. To make things worse for Pegasus, stealing souls was probably not his only sin in life. The card creator had a long journey ahead of him.

"Are you guys looking for a place to rest? Atem's city is just passed these bushes here. It's one of the few true resting places here." Yugi pointed out.

Pegasus's brows furrowed at Yugi's suggestion. "I had heard that that's why I came this way. I thought this little oasis was part of the resting area." Pegasus said.

"No, we're still in the trial zone I think," Yugi said with a shrug. Pegasus's eye widened.

The water in the pool suddenly exploded upwards with a loud boom. Most of the duel monsters scattered as Yugi covered his face. He then looked up to see a great Relinquished floating above the water. He remembered this beast, it would eat a monster every turn and get the attack and defense points of that monster. What was even worse is that if you attacked it while it had a monster, you took the damage for the life points lost.

"Were you really just waiting under the water for me to realize I wasn't safe?!" Pegasus yelled. The creature didn't make a sound. It simply opened its chest cavity and started inhaling everything. The strength of its pull was so strong that it was dragging the humans in along with the monsters. Yugi threw himself onto the ground. He grabbed onto a branch with one hand and tightly held Kuriboh with the other. To his left, Pegasus grabbed onto a nearby tree trunk with the other monsters as well. Yugi turned when he heard yelling from the monsters as one of them let go of the trunk.

"No! Toon Dark Magician Girl!" Pegasus yelled as the toon creature was sucked up by the Relinquished. The inhaling stopped but the Toon Dark Magician Girl was now stuck inside the Relinquished, squirming and screaming.

"What is going on?!" Yugi yelled. He and Pegasus got to their feet and started running away from the monster. If this was anything like the card game, that Relinquished just gained two-thousand attack points and it seemed eager to use them.

"I think it is a trial? It does seem to be a dark reflection of me with its theatrics! But it has been dogging us for the entire time I've been here! We haven't found a way to stop it yet!" Pegasus yelled. A Blue-Eyes Toon Dragon turned around and shot an attack at the Relinquished. The monster took the attack as Toon Dark Magician Girl popped out of the beast. Pegasus bent over in sudden pain and fell to his knees. Yugi looked back to see the monster had stopped chasing when Pegasus fell. It was now inhaling again and this time picked up a Toon Summoned Skull.

"Trials are no fun to get wrapped up in." Mana's word rang through Yugi's head. This wasn't his fight. He should leave and get back to the city. This was Pegasus's punishment for being downright evil in life. In fact, Yugi had every right to watch with a smile as this soul taker got his just desserts. Yet, that thought never even crossed Yugi's mind. Instead, he was focusing on dodging as he ran to Pegasus's side. The Kuriboh in his arm was squirming and making squeaky arguments with Yugi but he didn't let go of the puffball. That monster might decide to inhale again.

"Hey, you single eyesore!" Yugi yelled while flailing his other arm. The monster turned away from Pegasus. Yugi stood by the water, not quite sure what to do now. He wasn't going to bring this thing in the city, so where was he going to go? Suddenly another blast from the Blue-Eyes Toon Dragon hit the Relinquished in the back. The Toon Summoned Skull freed itself from the monster as Yugi felt a ripping pain spread across his chest. It had been a while since Yugi had felt real pain and he was definitely not prepared for it. He fell forward, only being saved by the quick movements of Kuriboh.

Yugi looked up to see Pegasus was not harmed by the blast and was getting to his feet.

"Hey, Pegasus! When the Relinquished is fixated on me I lose the 'life points'. I'm in better shape than you are, try fighting it when it's focused on me." Yugi managed to yell. Pegasus nodded. The monster started inhaling again and this time Kuriboh slipped out of Yugi's grip. The little puff ball was now part of the monster. While this only gave a little in the way of attack, Yugi was sure he wouldn't fare well with another hit. Yugi rolled away, all while clutching his chest. Pegasus was about to command his monsters to do something when a figure appeared behind him.

"Cec-Cecelia?" Pegasus gasped as the figure slowly walked forward. Yugi couldn't believe his eyes either. This woman was exactly like the painting he had seen in Pegasus's castle. She smiled to Pegasus and stretched out a hand.

"Come with me Max, I'm here to take you away from all this." She said in a voice so soft Yugi could barely hear it.

"Cecelia, I... I never thought I'd see you this early…" Pegasus stammered. Yugi looked back at the monster. It had just inhaled Blue-Eyes Toon Dragon and was swinging again at Yugi. He dodged, but just barely. His made-up starvation added with the pain in his chest caused the world to spin around Yugi. He stumbled to his knees as another attack was beginning.

"Pegasus." Yugi gulped. The monster was not stopping. Pegasus tried to look back to the fight, but his head was turned back by Cecelia's hand.

"Just you and me Maximillion, no one else matters." Cecelia cooed.

"Pegasus!" Yugi yelled one more time before he closed his eyes and braced for impact. He heard the monster's attack slam down, but he felt fine. He opened his eyes to see that Pegasus had jumped in front of him and had taken the hit.

"Oh no." Yugi breathed. Pegasus wasn't moving. Yugi started to reach out but was stopped by movement coming from the Relinquished. The duel monsters that it had absorbed shot out with a pop. It looked down at Pegasus then turned to Cecelia. She smiled to the beast, then she slowly faded away along with the Relinquished.

"Mmm." Pegasus groaned. Yugi quickly turned Pegasus over to make sure he was ok. He gasped when he saw Pegasus's face. "Hmm? What is it Yugi?" he mumbled. He lazily felt his face. When he reached his left side, he shot up. "My eye! It's back!" The duel monsters around cheered too as Pegasus continued to feel his face to make sure this was real.

"That's great Pegasus! I knew you could do it." Yugi smiled, making sure to hide his wincing. Pegasus ran to the water's edge to get a better look. As he did that Yugi laid down on the grass. The pain from the attack still wasn't gone and Yugi's hunger was turning into pain all unto itself. He looked across the oasis to see something strange. Black blobs where starting to form around the group. They slowly moved closer, continuing to gain shape. Some even started to gain neon outlines of animals. These didn't seem to be part of the Relinquished.

"What are those." Yugi choked out. Pegasus turned and his eyes widened.

"Those aren't supposed to be here! They are not monster from the trials!" Pegasus hastily said as he got Yugi to his feet. Yugi had to put all his weight on Pegasus, he could barely feel anything anymore.

The black creatures started to charge the group. Pegasus began to turn and run for the city but was stopped. Two jackal-headed guards came racing into the oasis and stabbed the creatures with their spears. Behind them came Seto and Mana on a chariot. They were yelling something to Yugi, but they sounded too distant to make out.

Yugi looked back down at his chest, he was still clutching it. Blood spilled from the wound the Relinquished had given him. Spirit's get bruises, they get wounds, they can even break bones on their journey, but they don't bleed. This was one of the things Yugi knew for sure. As the world went black around him, Yugi smiled slightly. Hey, if he was dying, he wouldn't be going very far.


	9. A Chance

Atem was sitting in a circular room surrounded by his advisers and another paradise leader. This leader was from a part of the afterlife made for a civilization called the People of the Stars. This man had arrived unannounced, simply appearing on their doorstep. He wore simple crimson robes but nothing else to show he was a paradise leader.

The only ones not here were Seto, he was still out, and Mana, who was out keeping his partner occupied. Atem had been resting his head on his gripped hands as he listened to the leader speech.

"All and all, it's most likely because of this negative energy wave that things have gotten so chaotic in the trial lands. This wave has broken into the netherworld and caused old enemies of mine to resurface. They are the ones summoning these 'shadow creatures'." The leader ended. Atem looked around to see his priests' reactions. Silence.

Finally, Aknadin spoke.

"That explains why the trials have gotten so violent, but who are the beings that can summon these creatures? They must be powerful if they can send creature all the way from the netherworld to here. I have even heard of these creatures getting into a soul's paradise and attacking." Aknadin said. The others nodded including Atem.

The leader sighed. "This energy loosened many bounds of the monsters locked down there. My enemies are known as the Earthbound Immortals. These smaller shadow creatures are most likely part of these greater Immortals." The leader's eyes were ringed with dark circles. He had been traveling around to each paradise leader and explaining the situation. "The Higher Ups are looking into as we speak." Murmurs came from others in the room. Atem listened to them all before finally speaking.

"Thank you for your hard work. Giving us the heads up about these creatures while surely help us prepare for them." Atem said. A grateful smile spread across the leader's face. This had probably been the first kind words he had heard since this event started.

"Just so we are completely sure, you said a human device caused this wave of negative energy? And this device was in Japan?" Atem asked. The leader nodded.

"I don't know what specific part of Japan it was. You know how hard the Higher Ups work to make sure we have as little contact with the living word as possible. I just know this wave killed many of the Japanese people along with breaking the channel into the netherworld. I and my helpers are currently working to block the channel but we can only do so much." The leader exhaled. All of Atem's priest turned to their pharaoh in unison. Atem's hands balled into fists below the table.

"Thank you, we will do what we can to stop these creatures," Atem said as he got up. The leader bowed to the group and then walked out. He obviously had many more to visit. With the afterlife not having a quick way to get messages between different parts, he had a long journey ahead of him.

All the priests started talking amongst themselves as soon as the man left. A paradise leader coming to another part of the afterlife was almost unheard of. A leader would have to get clearance from the Higher Ups to even begin such a journey, and permission was something these mysterious beings usually never gave.

Atem continued to listen to the chatter as he slowly released his gripped hands and breathed. Isis, who was on Atem's left, put a hand on his shoulder.

"That went well." She quietly said.

"Yes, I'm glad they had an actual leader come and explain instead of a servant. It made getting questions answered much easier." He said. He kept glancing out the window to the city below. Isis also glimpsed out the window, then back to Atem.

"Now we know how he died, it's almost assured he will accept his fate once we tell him." She reassured the pharaoh.

"I hope." He then got up and walked to the window. Atem looked out, over the never-ending river. Isis followed.

"What else is bothering you?" she asked.

"What are we going to do about those creatures? He said that they disappear fairly quickly if attacked, but they tend to grow in such large groups…" Atem quickly said. Isis looked deeply into the pharaoh's eyes.

"What else?" She said in almost a motherly tone. Atem sighed, he could hide very little from her.

"If Yugi does finally move on, he'll want to go immediately like everyone does. If he goes now… I cannot follow him. I have not even heard back from the Higher Ups about leaving. Add on this Earthbound Immortal situation. I cannot leave now." Atem finally said. He looked back out to the desert. He knew how childish that sounded. He had much more important responsibilities than following one soul around. He knew that he had to stay, but for once could not have to make a sacrifice for the greater good? Atem shook his head and smiled. Now that was a childish thought. He had other things to focus on. He turned back Isis with determination in his eyes.

"But what happens to Yugi is not my priority anymore. We have to focus on these creatures and the souls that have been affected by them." Atem said. Isis studied him closely.

"You say that... but do you believe your own words?" She asked. Atem chose to ignore her.

"We need to get the guards on alert, maybe even make more for the border..." Atem started commanding. The priests immediately responded to Atem's orders and started on their various tasks. "…and Mahad could you find Mana and Yugi and fill them in on what we found out? When Yugi accepts his fate make sure he has everything he needs for his journey." Atem ordered. Mahad nodded. He walked alongside Atem as they were both heading out of the palace.

The two both stopped dead in their tracks. From the doorway out of the palace, two men stumbled in followed by Seto and Mana.

"What happened?!" Atem yelped as he ran forward. Pegasus had just collapsed in front of them with Yugi draped over him. Yugi briefly opened his eyes. He looked to Atem, smiled, and then fell to the floor.

"We were attacked." Pegasus breathed. Atem immediately went to his knees and laid Yugi on his back. Atem gasped at the red splotches across Yugi's chest. He looked to Seto and Mana for answers. The two looked just as frantic as Atem was.

"Yugi managed to get out of the city and was mixed up in a trial and some weird shadow things." Mana squeaked. Atem's eyes widened even farther. The shadow creatures here? Already? Mahad came closer and gagged at the sight of the red on Yugi's shirt.

"What is that?" Mahad breathed.

"Blood. He was bleeding, but I managed to stop some of it." Seto said. Atem then looked back to his cousin.

"Is he?"

"It all makes sense, why he sleeps, why he needs to eat and drink. He's alive Atem." Seto said. The words rang around Atem's head like a bell. Everything else faded behind the noise. He simply kept staring at his partner. He was alive, he was alive.

Yugi looked up at the group. They all had the worried looks on their faces. Even Atem wasn't his usual regal self. Yugi groaned and covered his eyes from the light coming in from the outside.

"Does anyone mind standing over there so the light's not in my eyes? Thank you, Mana. Now that I can see…what happened?" Yugi asked. This snapped Atem out of his trance.

Everything came spilling out, the shadow creatures, the explosion, the fear of losing Yugi. Atem's talking led the others to frantically tell every side of their story. Pegasus and the Zero Reverse, Seto searching for Yugi when he realized he had left the city, even Mana cried about her fear of losing to Yugi at Mehen so she would restart the turn every time something wasn't going her way. The entire time Yugi listened quietly.

"Ok, so let's see if I got this right. First off, jerk move Mana. Next, the Ener-D reactor exploding somehow caused a negative energy wave and that made a channel to the netherworld? And that in some way sent me here?" Yugi asked after everyone had told their piece.

"That's about the gist of it." Everyone turned to see the leader from earlier come up to the group. He stopped for a moment when he saw the blood. He took a deep breath and walked to the group, making sure to keep his eyes on Yugi.

"But that doesn't make sense. The netherworld is where big world destroying spirits are locked away like Zorc. It's completely different from here. How does a channel like that cause him?" Seto demanded as he pointed to Yugi.

The leader raised his hand to relax Seto. "To get to the netherworld or, as it is sometimes referred to as, the underworld, you have to go through here. Like it names implies. Under-world, get it? Err, never mind. Normally, a person with a body would have no chance of falling into such a channel. Even if they were right over it in the living world, it's physically impossible. But I believe a person managed to get here alive before, right Atem?" the leader asked. Atem snapped to attention when his name was spoken.

"Yes... Seto Kaiba managed to travel here, all for a rematch." Atem said, with a hint of laughter in his voice.

"Kaiba?!" Yugi gasped. Before he could declare more, he started violently coughing. Atem immediately helped Yugi sit up to help clear his lungs.

"Yes, he used Diva's cube along with his technology to send himself here for an hour. Diva's cube could send things to other dimensions. I'm sure Kaiba used that as a loophole." Atem said.

"So, what? Was the cube near Yugi when that blast happened?" Seto asked.

"I doubt it. I'd be surprised if that cube is even still around. Sending someone to the afterlife alive would use up all of anyone magical item's energy. But that's not the point. Was Kaiba a willful guy?" the leader asked. Everyone agreed at once with a resounding but flat yes. The leader was a bit surprised by the quick and loud response.

"Err, well that's very much assured then. You see, there are two ways magic works, by Power and by Force. Will is a strong force, I've seen it in action many times in my time of being here. Yes, a combination of magical energy that can cut a channel into the afterlife, Power or in Kaiba's case, the cube. Plus a Force like Will can let a person travel anywhere." The leader said. Yugi couldn't help but laugh, causing himself to cough more.

"That's Kaiba for you." Yugi smiled. Atem once again helped Yugi sit up as the others turned back to the leader. The leader looked down at Atem trying to convince Yugi to save his energy. The leader bent down and observed the two closer.

"Then again…While Will is strong, I think a stronger force caused this little meeting." The leader reached into his pocket and pulled out a piece of paper. "I forgot, the Higher Ups wanted you to have this." He handed the paper to Atem. As the pharaoh looked over the small note, he looked to Yugi.

"Were you by chance thinking of Atem when the explosion happened? Thinking of your friendship specifically?" He asked. Yugi tilted his head as he thought back.

"Yes actually." He answered. Atem put down the paper and looked at the other leader.

The leader continued. "While Will is a strong force, there are stronger. Only a truly powerful Force could pull Yugi into the afterlife so quickly that he wasn't even touched by the blast. The Zero Reverse was the Power as it cut a channel to here. And the Force was…" The leader waited but no one spoke. "I believe this Force has saved you guys before."

"Argh! Friendship of course! It's always friendship!" Seto moaned as the rest realized it too. Mahad and Pegasus gasped as Mana covered her mouth in surprise.

"How do we get him back? Kaiba had a button he simply pushed to pull himself back to the world of the living. Yugi doesn't have something like that." Atem said quickly. There wasn't time to marvel over how strong their friendship was.

The leader shook his head. "This is where my expertise ends. All I can tell is that you do not have much time. A week of no food plus injuries from an extra violent monster makes for a short life. But I can suggest that if Yugi came in using friendship, the gateway out will be the same way." The leader got up and turned to the group. "I am sorry, but I have to leave now. Many more afterlives to go to, many more leaders to yell at me. I hope you two find your way home." The leader looked to Yugi and Atem. Before any of them could stop him, the leader stepped outside. With a sudden burst, the man turned into a large crimson dragon and flew away.

"He was… nice." Yugi said in a confused voice. Did leaders turn into dragons often? He looked to the others for answers, but they seemed just as confused as him.

"Helpful too," Mana added. It was Mahad, Seto, and Atem that felt a bit of fear. No mortal could turn into a dragon. They had the sneaking suspicion that they just dealt with more than a Paradise Leader.

Everyone turned to Yugi. This is when it finally hit Yugi, and the realization hit like a blast from Blue-Eyes. He was alive. He still had a chance at going back to his family and seeing his kids grow up. He immediately started trying to stand but found his strength betraying him.

"Please hold still. It will not do us any good if you fatigue yourself." Atem said.

"But I have a chance! I have to get back!" Yugi yelled. It was no use, he fell to the ground. "Not that I don't like being here with you guys…" Yugi looked up to Atem's magenta eyes. "I really do like being here but…"

"You don't have to say a thing," Atem said. He put Yugi's arm over his shoulder and he helped his partner stand. "We are getting you back to the world of the living," Atem said in a resolute voice. Isis was right. "I don't care what it takes."

"How do we even begin to do that?! All we have to go on is the gateway of friendship." Seto said as he crossed his arms.

"Didn't you tell me that Atem came here originally through a gateway? After the duel at the Millennium shrine?" Pegasus asked. Yugi's eyes lit up.

"The Ceremonial Battle, the ultimate test of our independents and friendship," Yugi said.

Atem nodded. "That gate is still here, right?" He asked. Mana looked up to her master. Mahad nodded and the two dipped their head to the pharaoh.

"We are getting you home Yugi."

 **Author's note: Thank you guys so much for reading. Each of your comments, favorites, and follows filled me with so much happiness. Just in case, I wanted to remind people that the Zero Reverse was the disaster that caused Yu-gi-oh 5Ds. I didn't make it up, it's part of the canon. Again, thank you for all your support ^.^ More to come soon.**


	10. An Attack

When Atem came through the gateway the first time, he collapsed immediately. Going from having his own body to being a spirit again was a shock to his system. Thankfully, his friends and family were waiting for him on the other side to take him to his paradise. He never had a reason to think about such a gate again when he came out of his paradise to be the next leader. Now though, it was their only chance. They could try and travel to the channel the Zero Reverse made, but that was in another part of the afterlife. Friendship was apparently strong enough to pull Yugi through three parts of the afterlife when he first came here. Atem wasn't sure Yugi would make it through that long trek back on foot. Making the Ceremonial Gate their closest option.

"You can lay down Yugi, I will keep you from falling off." Atem insisted. The group was racing across the trial lands on two horse-drawn chariots. They did not have time to find better transportation. Despite Yugi's insistence he was fine, Atem saw how the color was draining from his partner's eyes. While Yugi was now strong enough to stand on his own, that was about all he could do. He had to hold tightly to the chariot edges just to stay standing.

"I'll manage. Honestly, I feel like if I sit down, I won't get back up." Yugi croaked. Mana and Mahad looked worriedly over from their chariots. Seto stayed back to protect and run the land while Atem dealt with this. Pegasus wanted to come but he had his own journey he had to return to.

Before the group raced off, Pegasus warned Yugi about their gaming companies. The cartoonist knew with his death KaibaCorp would most likely buy his entire company. It wasn't a far stretch to see Kaiba doing the same to Yugi's.

"Kaiba's probably bought my company too by now. It was relatively small so it wouldn't have been much trouble for him. Then again, I'm sure my wife wouldn't have let go of it so easily. That war will certainly be a nice welcome back to the world of the living." Yugi noted.

"I'm sure you'll deal with it when you get there. It will be hard to say no to a dead man." Mahad smiled back.

The entire time Yugi had kept up this easy demeanor, he never showed even a hint of pessimism. Atem knew this act all too well. Yugi never wanted to be a burden on anyone, so he hid his fears with positivity as a child. This seemed to have grown into a somewhat sarcastic edge as an adult, but it still hid the same fears.

They were currently surrounded by miles and miles of pink sand. Atem had no idea where they were going but trusted that the two magicians did. The tentative plan so far was to find the gate and try and recreate the ceremonially battle. The original battle had everything needed to bring Atem into the afterlife. The Millennium items had the Power to open the gateway to the afterlife, and the battle caused enough of a Force to allow Atem through. This time though, they did not know if the Millennium Items were still there, or even if they could still use them on the gate. Atem quickly shook his head. He did not have time to think like that now.

He looked ahead towards the mountain that was now barely coming over on the horizon. It was the marker that ended the desert afterlife and led to the next part. Hopefully, the gate would still be at its base. Along with the mountain's summit barely peeking over, other silhouettes were starting to come into view.

"Shadow creatures!" Mana yelled as the two chariots' reigns were pulled back. The horses slid to a dusty stop as the creatures started to gain colored outlines.

They were only about the size of large dogs, but there were many of them. Each looking like different animals, a lizard, a monkey, a condor and many others. As soon as they saw the group, they all attacked.

Mahad and Mana quickly used their magic to put up a shield. Bouncing the fastest ones back. Many still managed to get past this and headed straight for Atem and Yugi. Atem jumped off his chariot and stood in front of the oncoming creatures. He reached out his arm and light surrounded it. A strange duel disk-like devise appeared on his arm. It opened up and odd symbols appeared where the card could have gone.

"You still have that stuff here?!" Yugi gasped. Atem looked back with a crooked smile.

"What can I say? It's the thing that made us famous." With that Atem turned back to the creatures and summoned monster Yugi had never seen before.

Just as the leader had said, the beast went down fairly quickly, but more kept coming. They were being surrounded despite their best efforts. Yugi looked frantically around. He had to do something. But something was hard to do when you could barely move. He looked up into the sky to see a strange green line. It shot out from behind the mountain and ended above the group. Yugi looked back to the mountain to see more silhouettes coming towards them. He squinted his eyes, he had to be hallucinating. It looked like two motorcycles and a car was driving across the sand, straight at them.

"Look out!" Yugi yelled as the car rammed into a group of creatures attacking the two magicians. The monsters went flying and disappeared before they hit the sand. The female motorcycle rider pulled out what looked like cards and used it to attack the creatures as she drove by. They disappeared to after every attack. The other motorcycle rider stopped by the two and pulled off his helmet.

"Tristan?" Atem stammered at the spiky-haired man. Tristan smiled

"Yep, we were just coming out of our last trial in this big metro city when this line shot past us. We followed it to you guys. Need some help?" He said. Yugi and Atem quickly turned to each other, then nodded to Tristan.

"Then get in the car!" They looked to the car to see Duke fighting off some of the creatures with his dice. Inside the car was Serenity fighting right along.

"We aren't exactly equipped to fight monsters at the moment!" She yelled. The other rider circled around the group. She gave Atem enough time to help Yugi off the chariot and into the car. As Atem did that Mahad and Mana turned and unlatched the horses. The animals immediately started racing back to Atem's city. The monsters were too focused on the duelists to give chase.

Serenity helped pull Yugi into the car as the others defended him. Once inside Atem and the magicians jumped inside as well.

"Time to go!" yelled the women. It was Mai.

"Head for the mountain!" Atem commanded. Duke cranked the wheel and sped back towards the mountain, soon followed by the two motorcyclists. Some of the creatures held on to the vehicles. They were soon shot off by either the magicians or Atem's monster. The monster followed for a while but soon disappeared, leaving only the group.


	11. Ceremonial Battle

"Thanks, guys, you don't know how good your timing was," Yugi said. Serenity who was in the front seat turned to face the group.

"We're glad to help. By the way nice to see you again Atem." She smiled. Tristin then rode up next to the side of the car.

"That's the understatement of the year! It's not just good to see you again! It's great! What is going on?" He yelled. As the group raced to the mountain everything was explained. Yugi tried to help at first, but soon found he was having a hard time formulating words. Everything seemed to tire him out. Even the world seemed to blur around the edges. He let the others explain as his head lolled to the side. It was then Mai rode up next to him.

"You doing ok there, honey?" She asked. Yugi snapped back to attention and smiled at her.

"Doing good. I should be asking how you guys are doing? How is your journeys going?" he asked.

"Fine so far. Past that mountain is this city that looks like it goes on forever. That is where I met up with these knuckleheads. In that city was a duelist torment as a trial. It ended much more violent than I was expecting, but we all made it out fine. We then felt like the next step of our journeys was to follow that line in the sky. Now we are here." She said.

Yugi had seen Mai only a week ago when he went out to dinner with her and Joey. That time had seemed so distant now.

"So, your still alive huh? You always get wrapped up in the craziest things." Tristan chatted. Yugi looked back to him in confusion mixed with sadness.

"I suppose, I'm just sorry you guys didn't get the same chance," Yugi said.

"Don't fret about it Yugi, we all accepted our passing." Serenity said. "I admit, at first I was terrified. What had happened? Where was my brother, my husband? But then I realized, and a peace came over me. I had lived my life and it was over now. A new journey has begun. I don't know how to explain it but by accepting our deaths things became… better. It's actually turning out to be fun believe it or not. Especially now that I found Duke and Tristan." She smiled. Duke turned back to Yugi and grinned.

"Don't worry about us, just focus on living until we can get you to the world of the living. K?" Yugi looked around at the group in awe. He really did have the best group of friends.

The group continued to chat until the mountain stood over them. Soon the gang came to a large cave in the side of the mountain. The Eye of Wdjat was carved above what looked to be a closed doorway. In the door was the six Millennium Items. All in the same formation as they were in the living world before the temple collapsed of course.

"Good, they are still here." Mana breathed as everyone got off their respective vehicles. Atem handed off the Millennium Puzzle to Duke who placed it in its own spot. The group then turned to Yugi who was leaning on Atem. He was looking up at the eye.

"Ok, how are we going to do this Yami?" Yugi asked. Atem eyes widened at being called his old name. He looked to Yugi, but the man was still gazing up at the eye. Atem looked up to the eye to see it was glowing. The light bathed over the two. It was like something clicked in both their brains, the test has begun again. They knew what to do.

"I can stand," Yugi whispered. He pulled away from the pharaoh and shakily walked to one side of the eye. He straightened up and gave a determined look to the group. Atem nodded and walked across from Yugi. The two both pulled up their arms and light surrounded them. Modern duel disks appeared along with two decks.

"The challenge has been decided. They are going to duel using the card game." Mahad uttered to the others in the room.

"Wait, who should win? Atem's already in the afterlife so is the door going to open again if he loses?" Tristan whispered. Mahad shook his head.

"We have no idea."

The two duelists pulled out 5 cards and began.

* * *

Joey Wheeler's card rolled its dice. Six, perfect. Gearfried the Iron Knight rushed forward and slashed through his opponent's monster. Its holographic image disappeared in a blast and its owner life points dropped to zero. Joey exhaled as the audience around shouted and clapped. He had won another world championship. Through the crowd, the announcer ran up to him. He handed the microphone to the returning world champion. Joey took the microphone and raised his hands to the crowd.

"I dedicate dese winnins' to the victims of the Zero Reverse! I, like many others, lost people dear to me in dat event. The winnins' of this is going straight to the rebuildin' effort!" The crowd went crazy. Joey watched the thousands of cheering people around him. Another man came up to Joey and handed him a large trophy. Joey shook his hand and waved to the crowd.

Too soon Joey was alone again, back in his hotel room. As he promised he sent off the money immediately to rebuilding Domino city, or New Domino City as people were calling it now. The once large city was now split, half of the land now floating miles away. The remaining city was growing into something different. Joey didn't know what the city was becoming, but he was going to be there every step of the way.

A video call rang on Joey's laptop. He sat down in front of the screen and answered. A brown-haired woman was on the other side.

"Téa!" Joey smiled, doing his best to hide his beer cans and trash. "How's Hollywood treating ya?"

The movie star smiled back. "I saw your duel. It was amazing!" She smiled. "Another world championship under your belt."

"Thanks, and I just saw your new movie too. Love it." Joey lied. It wasn't that he wasn't proud of his friend's movie and dancing career. He just could never stay awake during such fluffy love stories. Especially as of late, he just didn't like to go out anymore.

"Really? What dance number did you like the most?" Téa asked.

"Uhh, yeah, the one in the middle of the movie. The big one with the water." Joey quickly said. Téa laughed.

"My new movie wasn't a musical Joey. There was no dancing in this one." She grinned. Joey rubbed the back of his head and gave an embarrassed laugh.

"Well, I must have confused it with one of your other hits. Dere's just too many to remember." Joey joked. Téa then craned her neck to try and looked behind Joey. "What are you lookin' for Téa? You're in a video chat so cranin' your neck is not gonna show you anymore then you can already see." Joey stated. Téa returned an embarrassed smile.

"While I was kind of expecting you to be at a big party or something. Are you at least celebrating with someone?" Téa asked. All she could see behind her friends was an empty and unkempt room.

Joey leaned back in his chair and looked up at the high ceiling. "Nyeh, I didn't feel like doin' dat dis time. Maybe I'm getting' a little too old for partyin' like dat." Joey said.

"Now don't go saying that or else you're going to make me feel old." She said. The two laughed and slowly quieted down. It was silent between the two for a few seconds.

"It was really good, what you did with the winnings." She said. "I'm actually going back to Domino soon, to volunteer."

"Oh really? Maybe I should go with you. I'm sure Rebecca and the kids would be happy to see us." An awkward quiet. Then,

"Have they found him yet?"

"No, the game shop was found on dat satellite island, but nothing new was found," Joey said. Briefly, the image of Yugi, then Mai smiling flashed through his mind. An image he imagined a little too often. He looked away from the camera. He had something in his eye and he didn't want Téa to worry about a small speck.

"We have to get over there," Joey stated.

"I'm leaving tomorrow. I'll meet you at the old museum, k?"

"Agreed. See if you can bring your paparazzi with ya, maybe dey'll volunteer too." Joey smiled. Before the two could hang up another video call came through. At the same time, on both computers. The two looked at each other in confusion. Joey shrugged and answered the call.

* * *

Yugi pulled his hand up to block the strong wind blowing in his face. When it finally slowed down Yugi looked up to see Slifer the Sky Dragon bearing down on him.

'So Atem still had those cards.' Yugi looked across to see Atem's resolute face. Yugi remembered the last time they were facing each other like this. The test to see if Yugi really was ready to let the pharaoh go. He had proven himself then, even when he doubted if he could do it.

The world once again began to spin. Yugi closed his eyes and rubbed his head. The pain was starting to disappear, but it was being replaced with sudden weakness. It took all of Yugi's energy to stay standing. He had to focus on something else. He looked down at his deck.

The card deck that was summoned for this battle was not his new deck. It was his old deck he had used the first ceremonial battle. It took a bit to remember all the ins and outs of it, but soon he was dueling like he never changed his deck.

His Valkyrion the Magna Warrior stood defiantly in front of the god, but the monster soon fell to the god's blast. Yugi sighed and drew his card. What should he do? Not just this turn, what should he do about this battle? If he won then would anything change? If he lost would everything, they had worked towards disappear? No, one battle would not rewind all the growth he and Atem have gone through. He was more confident, more independent then he had ever been as a teen. Atem was much gentler, much less prideful. They didn't need each other for balance like they did back then. This battle wasn't about that.

The world was becoming fuzzier and fuzzier. Yugi activated Pot of Greed and drew two more cards.

* * *

Bakura slowly walked up the velveted hallway. He looked around at the expensive vases and painting along the walls. Beside him was Mokuba in a well-fitting suit. Bakura tugged at his own sweater. He should have picked out some better clothes. He was seeing an old colleague so it shouldn't matter what he wore, but this place would make anyone feel inadequate. Maybe that was the point?

The two stopped in front of a pair of office doors. Bakura looked to the tall man beside him. Mokuba had grown like a weed in his teen years. He was taller than Seto at this point. Mokuba gestured for him to open the door. Bakura quickly put up his arms and shook his head. He again gestured more forcefully.

"No, no you do it. He'll be in a better mood if he sees you first." Bakura quickly whispered.

"Whenever I bring up this subject he always gets in a bad mood. It won't matter who he sees first!"

"Then you won't mind opening the door!"

"Can I help you?" The two froze. They slowly turned to see Seto Kaiba looking down at them from the opened door.

"Oh, big bro! Ho-how are you doing?" Mokuba said as Bakura smiled innocently beside him. Kaiba studied the two. His face showing no emotions. Both Bakura's and Mokuba's smiles fell under the scrutinizing eyes of Kaiba. Finally, the CEO stepped away from the door.

"You only call me that now when you want something. Spit it out and make it quick. I just finished buying the Truesdale Brothers company." Kaiba stated as he walked back into his office. The two looked at each other with hope as they raced into the room. Kaiba had been trying to buy that company for a while. Maybe this would put him in a good enough mood.

"So, bro, let me just preface this by saying I didn't tell Bakura. He figured it out on his own." Mokuba began.

"I know you went to the afterlife after the Diva incident." Bakura blurted out. Mokuba cringed but Kaiba showed no change in emotion. He simply sat down at his desk.

"Err, yes, and we were wondering if you could tell us more?" Mokuba said. Kaiba remained silent, he was resting his chin on his interlocked hands. Minutes passed in silences. Not being able to stand the quiet anymore, Bakura stepped forward and cleared his throat.

"I understand if you can't speak about it specifically. What I'm most interested in is, well… Nearly all writings on the afterlife say that those that leave it alive have to lose something-"

"What has brought upon this sudden interest? Is this for your radio show?" Kaiba finally said. Him suddenly voicing something made Bakura jump.

"I-I don't have a radio show. I run an RPG Podcast. That's not my point! Ever since I've had the Millennium Ring, I've had more of a connection with the hereafter. Even after the Bandit King left me. Heck, I've even helped the Bandit King get a chance at being reborn. Minus Zorc of course!" Bakura quickly said. Kaiba remained unfazed. "Anyways, I know you had to have lost something. I was wondering what it was or at least an idea of it. So, I know what the Bandit king will have lost if he is reborn." Bakura ended.

Kaiba looked over him then sighed. "He won't lose anything. He was already dead so there would be nothing for them to take." Kaiba said.

"Them?" Mokuba asked.

"I believe the pharaoh called them the Higher... Whoever runs things there." Kaiba waved away the question.

"Still I would like to know, just in case," Bakura said. Mokuba was surprised at the forced behind Bakura's voice. He had never heard him speak above a whisper in a normal situation, let alone in front of his brother.

Kaiba leaned back in his chair. Bakura could almost see the gears turning in his head. Finally, he stood up and limped over to stand in front of the two.

"What do you see?" He asked. The two looked to each other in confusion then back to Kaiba.

"Uh, you bro," Mokuba said.

"Now imagine me standing here eighteen years ago, what would be different?"

"Umm, you have a limp now?"

"Exactly. I got it when I first landed in the afterlife. I landed on my leg wrong." Kaiba stated. A ringing came from his computer, Kaiba nodded to the two and returned to his desk.

"That's it? You were worrying for nothing Bakura. The punishment wasn't that bad." Mokuba said. Bakura was not convinced. No way it was that lenient.

"Mokuba, they updated the system again. How do you answer a video call?" Kaiba asked. Mokuba happily went over to help. That was when it hit Bakura. The only difference between Kaiba now and Kaiba then was a limp. There was no change.

* * *

Atem watched as Yugi set two face downs. This duel had been going on for an hour now. One never quite getting the upper hand over the other. While Yugi was still standing, he would stumble every so often. It was getting more common with every turn.

"I summon…I summon Marshmallon in defense mode." Yugi breathed. While his field was filled with monsters and Atem only had his Buster Blader, Yugi couldn't attack thanks to Swords of Revealing Light. It was the thing currently saving Atem but now he was regretting playing it. It was dragging out this battle.

"I end my turn." Yugi groaned. The light around his monsters disappeared. Atem drew his card and looked back to his partner. Yugi must have seen his worried face because he smiled.

"Don't go easy on me now. Remember you have to fight me with all your power!" Yugi yelled. Suddenly Yugi pitched forward. The others began to move to catch him but he stopped himself. "I got it." He huffed. He was on his knees now.

"Yugi." Atem breathed.

"I'm fine Atem. I just have the same problem as I had before. I don't know if I should win or not." Yugi yelled. Atem had the same question too, but he decided to throw everything he had into this fight, he could do nothing less.

"It is strange to be fighting you like this again. Though, we are not fighting for our independents this time." Atem called back as he looked through his cards. He needed to keep Yugi conscious and the pharaoh hoped a conversation would help.

"True, I'm sure we have proved ourselves many times in these eighteen years apart," Yugi mumbled. He tried to get back on his feet but found he couldn't do it. He sighed as he fully rested on the ground. "But you know what? I never stopped wanting you back with me. I suppose everyone does when a loved one leaves." Atem kept reading his cards over and over again. His brain was not registering the printed words. He had to hurry. Why couldn't he read this?!

"It wasn't because I needed you as I did as a teen. I just missed you." Yugi nearly whispered. He was now holding his head and swaying. Atem looked up at the round eyes of his dearest friend.

"Me too." Was all he could say. He had felt that exact same thing many times over. But now wasn't the time for that, he had a kingdom to rule, Yugi had a family to get back too. Their partnership was over.

A strange look spread over Yugi, a combination of realization and fear.

"I guess that means we failed the battle huh?" Yugi whispered. Atem noticed his hand start to move towards his deck. Yugi was going to surrender.

"No! Yugi listen to me. As you said we have proven our independents many times over!" Atem shouted, "That's not what this is even about! We have to get you in the world of the living! Remember?!"

The two's eyes met and Atem froze. Yugi gave one last smile and placed his hand on the deck and collapsed. The others gasped as the monsters disappeared. Atem pretty much threw himself to Yugi's side.

"Yugi, Atem!" Serenity screamed as the Eye of Wdjat shot a bright beam that covered the whole room in white.

No sound, no flash of light, just white.

* * *

Marik Ishtar closed his suitcase and looked to his sister.

"I have to go. The city needs as much help as they can get." He said. He did his best not to look into his worried sister's eyes.

"But the city is still mostly destroyed," Ishizu begged as Marik passed her.

"It's been ten months since the Zero Reverse. I trust Kaiba when he says it's safe." Odion was waiting outside with the motorbikes. They were both going to volunteer in New Domino along with Yugi's friends.

"I'll make sure nothing happens to him," Odion reassured to his sister. She sighed and went back inside the house. The two suddenly heard the ping for a video call. Odion looked at his watch. They had time before the plane left. The two walked back inside to see if it was for them. They turned to see Ishizu had answered the call.

"Who is it?" Marik asked. Ishizu held her hand over her mouth and stared at the screen. The two brothers raced to the computer. After staring for many silent seconds, the three siblings looked to each other to make sure they all saw the same thing. There on the other side of the call was an Egyptian teen with tri-colored, spiky hair.

"A-A-Atem?!" Marik managed to stammer out. The teen nodded and waited for the torrent of questions to begin. He didn't have to wait long as all three siblings started yelling into the microphone. It got so loud that the speaker on Atem's side screeched.

"Please wait a moment!" Atem yelled as he covered his ears. The siblings quieted down and gawked at the what should be dead pharaoh. "Please, we need your help. We are at the Shrine of the Millennium Stone. You three are the closest so I had Diva call you first." The three saw a new hand come from outside the camera and wave.

"Wha-at? How?" Marik asked.

"I can explain that later. For now, please call Yugi's family and friends. We are getting him to a hospital as we speak. He's alive and in Egypt." It was then that the three noticed that Atem seemed to be in a truck, bouncing along the road.

"Ok, but what about-?" Atem closed off the call. He didn't think he could get them to do what he asked for any faster than not answering their questions.

* * *

Atem looked around the small truck. It was only big enough for four people. Diva and Sera were in front with Atem and a sleeping Yugi in the back.

Diva took back his phone. He and the other living students of Shadi had been protecting the Millennium Items ever since KaibaCorp left the site. One day the eye on the wall suddenly started glowing and two figures appeared out of the light. Diva recognized one, but not the other.

"So, how did you get here again?" Sera asked. Atem kept his eyes on Yugi, making sure the bobbing of the truck didn't hurt him too badly.

"We failed our test. We were not ready to be separated." Atem quickly said. That wasn't the whole truth but it was the most that Atem cared for right now. Yugi was alive. He was alive.


	12. Alive

"How do you think he got here?"

"I have no idea. Maybe he had some sort of break down and needed a rest?"

"Well, it was some break! Thin with that huge gash in his chest. I'm just glad they got him here before worse happened. Speaking of they, where is that creepy boy? He always seems to be here. Oh! You're finally awake."

Yugi groaned as he worked to lift his eyelids. In front of him were two Egyptian women in nurse uniforms. They had been speaking Egyptian Arabic which Yugi only knew a little of.

"Where am I?" Yugi tired. Hopefully, he did not butcher the language too badly. It had been five years since he last used it.

The two women glanced at each other. One left the room and the other came closer to Yugi. She started checking his bandages. Yugi winced as she worked on him. Everything hurt. He tried to sit up but was pushed back down by the nurse.

"Please hold still." She said in her language. Yugi sighed. He looked down at the many IVs coming out of his arm. He had not seen technology like this in the afterlife. Had he made it out? He looked around the room. Outside his window was a sprawling city at midday.

"You're in the Cairo Hospital." She eventually answered, or that's what Yugi could make out. This made him gasp.

"How long have I been here?" He frantically asked.

She answered, but it was something Yugi could not translate. The nurse started to check the IV bag hanging beside the bed, not noticing his confusion. Yugi laid his head back down on the pillow and stared at the ceiling. The last thing he remembered was battling Atem. Everything was going hazy, he could barely stand anymore then… Yugi's eyes widened. He shot up from his laying position much to the nurse's and his body's anger.

"Where is Atem?!" Yugi gasped in Japanese. The nurse forced him to lay back down. She didn't have to try very hard since his body was already screaming in pain. Fear shot through Yugi. In his weakened hazy he had ended the battle by surrendering. In his pain and delirium, he had not thought about the consequences of ending the battle like that. Yugi tried to remember more. What happened after they were surrounded by light? He remembered his friends' yelling and voices he did not recognize. Were they yelling at the strange voices or were they yelling at him? Then Yugi's biggest fear shot through him like a lightning bolt.

'Did my actions just forcefully pull Atem here…?' Yugi breathing quickened. He then did something he had not done in years. He reached out into mind.

'Atem, are you there?' Yugi mentally asked. This had been the way he talked to Atem when they shared a body. Yugi held his breath. 'Please, please, please, don't let me have dragged him here. Let him rest, let him enjoy all his hard work.'

Quiet, just like that part of his mind had been these last nineteen years. Yugi breathed a sigh of relief. The nurse sighed too, she was watching his vitals and the sudden rising in vitals had taken all her attention.

Two voices drifted in from the hallway. The door then opened. The nurse from earlier and a doctor came in.

"Ah, Mr. King of Games, you're awake." The doctor smiled. He said this in Japanese much to Yugi's relief.

"Hello?" Yugi hesitated.

"You gave us a real scare. We almost lost you at first, but thankfully your friends were able to bring you here in time for us to help you." The doctor said as he checked Yugi's vitals.

"Friends?" Before Yugi could ask more the door swung opened again and a mob of people came rushing in. Yugi soon found himself being hounded by Diva, Sera, and the entire Ishtar family.

"Hey, guys." Yugi breathed through their declarations of excitement.

"Hey, guys?! After all that, that's all you have to say?" Marik yelled. The whole group was soon shushed by the irritated nurses.

"Sorry." Most of them whispered. Yugi looked at them all with wide eyes.

"I-I, what happened?" Yugi eventually asked.

"You were gone for about ten months," Ishizu answered in a whisper.

"Ten months and a week," Sera added.

Yugi put his hand to his forehead. "Ten months? It felt like only a week... Was I gone as in, a coma?" he almost hoped.

"No, as in you were missing. Gone." Diva stated. Yugi's heart started beating faster again.

"There was no trace of you and trust me, people looked. It was all over the news how the King of Games was missing. There were many groups of fans that almost destroyed the city again to try and find you. Then you just suddenly appeared here in Egypt. What adventure did you end up in this time?" Marik asked. Yugi found he couldn't collect his words. He himself didn't quite know what happened. Where did he even began?

"I-I was. Gone." Was all Yugi could get out. He tried for many more minutes to string an explanation together, but it all ended up similar to Yugi's first attempt. It was not like Yugi wasn't trying to explain, but every time he tried to say something even closely referring to where he had been his mouth wouldn't work. It wouldn't even stay open. It simply looked like Yugi didn't want to talk. The nurses pointed at his elevated heart rate and said something to the doctor.

"Ok, he clearly needs rest. Please leave so we can give him some space." The doctor ordered as the nurses started to herd the complaining group out.

"Wait, don't leave yet. I'm fine-" Yugi's words dried up in his throat as he looked at the doorway to his room. There, leaning against the door frame, was an Egyptian Atem in very modern clothes.

It felt like Yugi's heart stopped. It must have because the nurses were moving around anxiously as they studied his vitals.

"Atem?!" Yugi gasped after seconds of silence. Atem slowly nodded to Yugi. His face was unreadable. The normal Atem look, but it was utterly infuriating right then. The doctor turned to Atem, then to Yugi.

"This boy was part of the group that brought you in." the doctor said. Yugi blankly stared. "If you truly feel up to it, we can allow one family member to be here. I'm guessing this boy is part of your family?" Yugi blinked and turned to the doctor. Words continued to stay stuck in his throat. "Or maybe I'm mistaken. I suppose you do have many fans that dress up like you. I just thought with the similar hair and facial features…"

"Wait! Yes, yes, he is my brother. I'd like him here with me." Yugi stammered. A small smile broke Atem's stone face. He walked into the room, passing the others who were still being pushed out. They looking a bit jealous as he passed them, but most still smiled back at Yugi.

"Get better soon!" Sera yelled as the door clicked closed.

Atem quietly walked up to a chair by the bed and sat down. His face was back to being unreadable. Yugi continued to stare at him, his eyes widening every second.

"Mr. can you face me, please? I need to do a few tests. Mr.?" Yugi barely registered the voice. It got to the point where the doctor had to tap his shoulder to get his attention.

"Sorry." Yugi breathed.

Atem stayed as close as he could to Yugi but didn't speak. He moved wordlessly when the nurses needed to be on his side of the bed. He answered any questions the staff had with quick, nonverbal answers. He didn't even say anything to Yugi. Not that Yugi had much of a chance to talk with the staff constantly working on him. Apparently, Atem had done this silent treatment to everyone for the last few days. There was something else about him though. Another reason the nurses had labeled him as the "creepy boy". Yugi felt it prickle down his spine every time he glanced at the pharaoh. A discomforting aura that seemed to radiate from him. He felt like a late-night intruder, he wasn't supposed to be here.

"That should do it, for now, Mr. King of Games. Rest, food will be up in about three hours. Push that button if you need a nurse." The doctor said as he left with the nurses, making sure to give Atem a wide berth. With a small _click_ of the door, it was just the two.

Yugi still couldn't sit up without help. All he could do was turn his head to face the motionless pharaoh.

"How?" was all that Yugi whispered. Atem closed his eyes and exhaled. He then turned to Yugi with one of the fakest smiles Yugi had ever seen him do.

"I-We failed our test. We proved we couldn't be separated. You were very smart to think of that. It opened the gateway and-"

"I know that's not what happened," Yugi said in an even voice. "Don't lie to me to make me feel better. Did I force you here-?"

"No. Don't you dare think you did anything wrong," Atem commanded. Yugi could feel nearly 5000 years of force behind that voice. Atem rarely ever used that voice on him. He immediately closed his mouth as Atem studied his face.

"Have you tried…referring to the last ten months?" Atem asked.

"Yes…It feels like my body freezes every time that I…" Yugi still found it incredibly hard to even think of where he had just come from.

"They made it purposefully like that. They don't want any connection between …and this world." Atem said. He looked up to the ceiling, his hands gripping his knee. "That is why I can't tell you why I'm here in this form." Once again that wasn't the truth and Yugi knew it. He wanted to sit up, just a bit. All so he could get a better look at Atem's face. His body wouldn't allow it so he stayed laying down, trying to understand what Atem was hiding. That unsettling aura was now stronger than ever. It was making goosebumps grow across Yugi's skin. No matter how much Yugi tried to tell himself otherwise every cell in his body was screaming that Atem was something that should not be here. A shadow creeping across the floor without anything to make it.

"I'm sorry." Was all Yugi could whisper. Atem snapped his attention to Yugi. The aura lessening a little.

"Do not start. It was all out of our control. Just know…you…did not force me here. I absolutely had a choice and I would do it again and again." Atem firmly said. He finally looked Yugi in the eyes and this time, he had a true smile. "If it takes a little bit time being in a mortal body to keep you alive, I will do it, gladly."

"Only a little time?" Yugi whispered. A strange battle inside Yugi's head started over those four words. One between feelings of relief and sadness. Atem said no more and the two remained in silence for what seemed like hours. Eventually, Yugi was able to smile back at Atem, one side of the little war winning out.

"How is being mortal again treating you? I still remember the last time you had to take care of a body alone. You ate a single onion, raw I might add, then walked in the desert for days lugging a duel disk. When I finally got my body back after Dartz I thought I was going to collapse from malnutrition." Yugi joked.

Atem gave an embarrassed laugh. "Taking care of the body had always been your job. It was kind of hard to remember what needed to be done after five-thousand-years and the world about to end again. But do not worry, I'm taking much better care of this body. In these last three days, I have eaten two much need onions." Atem proudly said. He had to make it clear it was a joke though after Yugi gave the teen a worried look.

The two continued to laugh and talk through the hours. The topic of what had just happened in the last ten months never making it into the conversation. Instead, they talked like old friends, brothers even. Joking and teasing, making sure the other never had a chance to even think of being gloomy. The aura Atem gave off didn't go away, but Yugi got used to it. He only ever barely noticed it when he saw nurses tense up as they passed Atem.

Soon enough the others were allowed back in during dinner time. Yugi now felt strong enough to sit up. They all surrounded his bed, but Yugi noticed most did their best to give Atem a few feet of space.

"Diva had to go back to the shrine to catch the others up on what happened. You two did just suddenly appear out of a ray of light. It frightened most of the workers there." Sera said in between bites.

"Sorry, we weren't planning it like that. I promise." Yugi laughed as he ate his own food. He then turned to Atem. He gave him a questioning glance. Did they have to do that battle again? Atem shook his head then pointed to the others.

"I can tell. The whole place started to collapse as soon as you guys came through. It's going to take at least half a year to dig it out again. Maybe more." Sera sighed. "We weren't just protecting the items there. It was also a great archeology dig. We were able to find out so much more about the ancient shadow games from that site."

"You do know I just about killed myself to lock away those games. For my sake do not go releasing them again." Atem quietly said as he slurped up his soup. Yugi recognized the pharaoh's joking voice but the others seemed to have missed it. This group did know the least about Atem out of all his friends.

"Oh no, no! We're not doing anything like that. Most of the people we have working for us don't even believe that the shadow games existed. We're simply using it to better understand the past." Sera quickly said. "We want to know the world our master knew so well." She then added. Atem nodded to her in approval.

"Yugi, have you had a chance to talk to the others yet?" Odion asked. Yugi looked up in surprise.

"The others? Oh Gods, my family! Rebecca, AJ, Chell! Are they ok?! How is everyone doing?! I don't know how they slipped my mind!" Yugi yelped. His heart rate started raising again and the other immediately made him lay back down.

"Your family is fine. Please calm down. If the staff see that every time we come into your room your heart rate raises, they're going to kick us out of the hospital." Marik said. Yugi slowly breathed in and out until the monitor stopped rapidly beeping.

"They were still in America when the Zero Reverse happened. They are in Japan now with the others. The house you guys bought is still standing." Ishizu answered.

"The others?" Yugi asked.

"Téa, Joey, your friends. They are all in Domino city. We were all going to the city to help rebuild when you two showed up. Marik and I stayed here for obvious reasons, but the others all met at Rebecca's, or, your house." Odion added.

"They've been contacting us nonstop these last few days, but we really didn't have anything to update them on. Especially since you were in no state to talk and this royal pain wouldn't speak to us at all." Marik gestured to Atem still sitting next to Yugi. Atem gave a small wave as his answer.

"They managed to move in…" Yugi breathed as he imagined his family moving into a destroyed house.

"Don't worry, your street had very little damage. The least in the city in fact. I guess it's good that you guys decided not to move close to the Kame shop. That part of town is now floating miles away from the rest of the city." Marik said.

Yugi looked to the group for more answers. They explained how a small satellite island had been pushed away from the rest of the city thanks to it being closest to the earthquake and tsunami. The city decided to abandon that island and work only on fixing the city that was still part of the mainland.

"An earthquake? Wasn't it actually…?" Once again Yugi found he couldn't speak. Specifically, he couldn't say reactor.

"It's sad what happened. An earthquake cut the city and the tsunami pulled it apart. Nature can be terrifying sometimes." Sera said.

"Kame game shop was relatively close to the earthquake's origin point, it's part of that satellite island now," Ishizu said sadly. Yugi suddenly remembered his father and mother who had been in the shop that night. He then remembered all his friends he had met in the afterlife. They probably had been farther away from the explosion than his parents had been. A sad nod from the group told Yugi all he needed to know. A strange pain dropped into Yugi's heart. It felt like ice, but it didn't feel strong enough for what should have been a piece of devastating news. Atem slid closer to Yugi and put an arm around him.

"You ok?" Atem asked. The others looked away from the two. Either at a sudden phone call or something interesting out the window. They probably did it to give Yugi some privacy.

"Yes, too accepting in fact. I should be sad, miserable even, for all of them. But I keep imagining the journey they are about to go on and the sights they are going to see. I know they're all going to be fine. Is that bad?" Yugi whispered. Atem gave Yugi's shoulder a squeeze.

"I don't know, but if it keeps you from hurting..." He whispered back and pulled away.

An actual pinging came from Marik's phone. In surprise, he looked at the caller.

"It's Téa again. Do we have more to tell her this time around?" He asked as he looked to Yugi and Atem. The two nodded and Marik answered the phone. The group helped Yugi sit up and they all turned to the phone propped up on the footboard.

"Hey, Téa." Yugi smiled at the video call. It took a few seconds for her to realize who she was talking too. Her wide eyes filled with tears. Her hands covered her mouth as she stared through the camera.

"Is dat who I think it is?!" Téa was soon roughly pushed aside by Joey. He smiled through his own tears at the camera. "About time Yugi! Any longer and we would have come down to Egypt ourselves! Rebecca, AJ! Guess who's up!" Yugi felt tears starting to welling up in his own eyes. Joey was just about tackled by a short plump woman with long blonde hair.

"Yugi, Yugi is that you?! Are you ok?! Did you defeat another villain?! Is the world in danger?! Please tell me you are ok!" Rebecca cried into the camera. She was soon surrounded by other faces.

* * *

Atem smiled at Yugi's welcome to the world of the living. He slowly pulled away from the bed. He had not been in the phone's shot to begin with, this was Yugi's time.

Atem left the room without much notice. The sun was almost covered by the horizon so Atem grabbed a jacket from a locker the hospital had given him. The Ishtars had been kind enough to buy him some modern clothes after they checked Yugi into the hospital. It certainly helped lower the amount of staring. His clothing from the afterlife was still folded inside the locker. He was a little worried someone would steal the gold jewelry inside, but he would deal with that as it came. At least he did not have to worry about the Millennium Puzzle, that was still in the afterlife.

He soon found himself walking up to the roof of the hospital. He had not left this hospital since checking in. Giving him many hours to explore it and find the best spots to hide. He knew very well the effect he had on most people now. He was not supposed to be here and they were forced to know it. Atem opened the door and a gust of chilled night air hit his face. He walked into the night sky. No stars could be seen in this city, much like Domino. He breathed in and felt the air around him. He remembered back to after the light had enveloped him and Yugi.

 _He cannot leave without losing something proportional to how long he has been here. A week is the longest any living thing has known this place and he will be punished accordingly. Only a truly twisted soul would purposefully stay in the afterlife so long._

Just thinking about the many voices of the Higher Ups made Atem's newly flowing blood boil. Sure, they had been kind earlier to Atem. The piece of paper the other leader had given him was a note of approval. He could now follow Yugi on his journey. But when the Higher Ups found out that Yugi was indeed alive after the ceremonial battle alerted them… They thought the only adequate punishment for staying so long in the afterlife was to be there permanently.

 _He did not know! He is innocent in all this!_

 _Ya! Yugi would never purposefully break the laws of nature. I have been his friend almost all his life. Look it up, I'm Tristan Taylor and I will vouch for him!_

 _Me too. Mai Valentine!_

 _Duke Devlin!_

 _Serenity Taylor, we all will vouch for Yugi's character._

Yugi's friends defending him so adamantly was the only memory that let Atem's fist unclench. They were willing to fight what could very well be the creators of the afterlife for their friend.

 _Unless you have something equal to his soul there is nothing you can do. He has to lose something and that is what he shall lose. His body will be alive but his soul will remain here. Now go, do not we all have enough to worry about with these Earthbound Immortals trying to break free?_

Atem looked up at the bright moon above him. He never thought he'd see it again like this. With blood flowing through his veins and breath from coming from his lungs.

 _I believe I have something equal to his soul._

 _Pharaoh Atem, think about what you will lose with your next words. It has been your goal since locking yourself away in that puzzle around your neck._

 _Atem, what are you doing?_

 _Oh, please Atem, you don't have to do that! We'll find another way!_

Atem smiled, at the time it had not been hard to give away. He supposed Yugi must have felt the same feelings when he pushed the pharaoh out of the closing Seal of Orichalcos.

 _I will trade my place in paradise for his soul. My place in the afterlife if I have to. Yugi must return to the world of the living._

Atem knew very well it was an idiotic idea. Trading his eternity for what would be in comparison a very short time for Yugi. All his ancient friends and family would never see him again. But he had to do it. He could not let them hurt his partner.

He had expected to become a wandering spirit or be trapped once again in a prison like the Millennium Puzzle.

 _Are you sure?_

 _Absolutely._

 _Fine, your trade is acceptable. You are now locked out of your own paradise. You will have to earn it again if you ever wish to go back. That means you will have to save the world again._

… _What?_

Atem was pulled out of his thoughts by loud thumping. A strong wind started to push against the pharaoh, making him step back towards the doorway and cover his face. Through the harsh wind, he saw a helicopter hovering in front of him.

"Pharaoh!" Atem jerked his head up to see the cold eyes of Kaiba jump off the helicopter. The CEO only stumbled a moment on his bad leg.

"This is not a landing spot!" Atem yelled over the chopping. The large craft hovered back into the sky leaving the two on the roof.

"Not my problem," Kaiba said as he looked over the pharaoh. He studied Atem like a piece of misbehaving technology. Atem was surprised by how right Yugi had been. Seto had not grown a bit since he last battled him in the afterlife.

"So, it is true. Your back in the world of the living." Kaiba stated. Atem gave him a curt nod. "Then you'll need this." With that Seto threw a briefcase at Atem. He caught it and opened it suspiciously. Inside were documents. Things like a birth certificate or a passport. "Happy birthday, Atem Muto."


	13. Fun Fact

The sun had set a long time ago, Yugi didn't notice. He hadn't even noticed Atem's exit.

"You must swear that next time you go on some adventure that you at least warn your family!"

"Ya Dad! Wait, why does Dad get to swear and I can't? We're both men!" Yugi silently laughed at his son's indignation. Since he couldn't talk about the afterlife, he had decided to go along with everyone's idea that he went to save the earth again.

"Just keep listening to your mother now AJ." Yugi smiled at the bouncing boy in the camera. He then turned to his wife.

"I really didn't have a choice in whether or not I could contact you. I absolutely would have if I could."

'We would have needed an Ouija board for that.' Yugi thought to himself, then added.

"You know how hectic things get when trouble arises."

Rebecca sighed and nodded. "I'm just happy to have you back. Did you at least defeat whatever dark force you were fighting?"

Yugi's mouth pulled into a straight line."…Yes." he said. Before they could pick his story to pieces, a nurse opened the door.

"It's the end of visiting hours Mr. King of Games." She said. Apparently, Muto was hard to pronounce in Egyptian. So, much to Yugi's chagrin, King of Games had been his only title here.

"Thank you." Yugi said back in Egyptian. The nurse bowed and left.

"Did you hear that guys? It's time for me to go." Yugi told the camera.

"Really, why is Dad leaving? The sun's barely rising." AJ asked.

"Dad's time is ahead of us." Rebecca explained.

"Ya, fun fact about the world ain't it? Your Dad might be living in our tomorrow right now." Joey added. AJ's eyes widened as he looked at Yugi.

"Woah, that means when you come back, you'll be a time traveler!" He grinned. Both of his parents smiled at the boy's excitement. He was soon ushered away by Joey and the others. The only one left at the phone was Rebecca.

"Are you sure you don't want us to come to you? It won't be any trouble for us at all." Rebecca started but she was soon cut off by Yugi raising his hand.

"No, it much more cost effective for us to buy the tickets along with the Ishtar family. They're coming to you guys anyway so might as well travel with them." Yugi said. Rebecca's face pulled into a familiar pout. Yugi had truly missed his family during his time in the afterlife, though he had hidden it well. He didn't want to deal with the odd feeling of utterly missing someone and also hoping to never see them again. Now that he was alive, just seeing them brought so much joy. Even Rebecca's little pouts filled his heart with a warming light.

"It won't be long. I'll be out of the hospital and back with you guys before you know it. I love you." Yugi said. Rebecca sniffed and did her best to wipe away her tears without Yugi noticing.

"I'm keeping you to that. Love you too."

"You know, I can leave my phone with you guys. We might have to leave but you two can keep talking." Marik words brought Yugi's attention violently back to reality. Marik was the only one left in the room other than Yugi.

"I wish, but I don't want to take your data and I can tell my painkiller is wearing off. You won't want to see me all irritable." Yugi sighed.

"I've seen your every mood Honey. Anger is a rare one though. I might want to stay on just to see such a rare event." Rebecca joked. Yugi chuckled and said his goodbye. He was about to turn off the phone when stomping came down the hallway followed by orders in Egyptian. Everyone turned towards the door as it was forced open.

"Seto?!" Yugi gasped. Kaiba's eyes immediately fell on Yugi. He strode into the room like two nurses weren't trying to stop him.

"Kaiba! What are you doing there? How did you even find out what hospital he was at? The Ishtar's made sure not to tell us." Rebecca asked in surprise.

"Yes, we wanted to avoid this very thing!" Marik remarked.

"You shouldn't keep your blinds open like that Yugi. The King of Games suddenly being spotted in Cairo quickly makes news. Thankfully, I put out a hefty reward for information on you so I was one of the first to be notified. It won't be long until it's all over the news." Seto stated.

Yugi completely froze up. He had learned not to mind spectators watching him during planned events like matches or interviews, but his stage fright outside those events had skyrocketed. Many surprise visits to his private property, three stalkers, and five attempted kidnappings had made him jumpy at the thought of someone watching him. He slowly turned to look out the window. The sky was completely dark, but many city lights danced through the skyline. Was one of them the glint of a camera?!

"Close the blinds! Close the blinds!" Yugi begged. Marik immediately vaulted over the side of Yugi's bed and shut the blinds. Yugi inhaled deeply as the nurses continued to try and remove Kaiba from the premises.

"Just another reason for me to get home faster to you guys. Buy those two extra tickets as quick as you can Marik." Yugi smiled.

"No need, I'm taking you back with me. We are leaving this Sunday." Seto stated.

"That's only a week for him to heal!" Rebecca yelled out of the phone.

"That's more than enough time for Yugi." Seto said. Yugi blinked, he didn't know if he should be mad at Kaiba's impatiences or feel pride at the CEO's faith in his strength.

Another pair of hurried steps ran down the hallway. In came Atem lugging a suitcase.

"Don't listen to him Yugi. We will leave when you feel up to it." He gasped.

Though Rebecca still couldn't see Atem, her pupils widened at his voice.

"Yugi… Why did you say you needed two tickets?" Rebecca whispered.

"For Atem of course, we aren't going to leave him here in Egypt-" Yugi started. He then noticed Rebecca's stunned face and Marik's worried one.

"We didn't know how to tell them. Add on Atem wasn't really talking to us either so… we just didn't say anything." Marik gave a nervous smile. Yugi stared at him with a mixture of emotions that he himself didn't quite know how to describe. He then looked down at Rebecca. She was just as frozen as Yugi was. The nurses were still fighting Kaiba, Yugi's pain was starting to flood back into his body and, was that another camera glint in between the blinds?!

"FUN FACT ATEM'S ALIVE!" Yugi panicked. He immediately ended the call and fell back unto his pillow.

The room was silent. No one moved.

"Well… That was one way to tell them."


	14. Let's Get This Straight

Yugi was in and out of consciousness for the next few days. Mostly staying awake for only thirty minutes or so. The entire time Diva's group or the Ishtars would pop by briefly to visit, just to see how Yugi and Atem were faring. Seto was nowhere to be found (much to the hospital staff's relief). Atem never left the hospital, but he did leave Yugi's bedside more often. If he wasn't by Yugi he would be reading in the small library attached to the hospital. Doing his best to catch up with society. He even once tried to look up something on the computer. He was quickly sent back to Yugi's room though for nearly setting the old thing on fire. He could still feel the librarian's scowls every time he passed by.

It was late Thursday morning when Yugi finally woke up with a clear head. He looked around the room to see Atem next to him rifling through a suitcase. Yugi had seen Atem look through that suitcase before but hadn't been coherent enough to question him about it. Atem eyes flicked briefly to Yugi.

"Are you up?" He asked.

"I think I am." Yugi groaned as he sat up. His pain was not as sharp as it had been the first day, but it was now harsher than these last few fuzzy days.

"Take things slow. The doctors took away your pain medicine now that the worst of the healing is done." Atem advised as he continued to look through the papers in the silver suitcase.

"Ah, so that's why my head is not filled with Cloudians anymore," Yugi said. Atem had left some food on the bed stand and Yugi happily snatched it. As he ate, he leaned in closer to see the papers Atem was looking through.

"What did Kaiba give you that was so important that he came here himself?" Yugi asked between bites. Atem pulled out a square piece of paper and showed it to Yugi. "A birth certificate?" Yugi coughed.

"Mhm, he thought of everything, passports, high school grades, he even fabricated records of me participating in a few online duel tournaments," Atem said. Yugi took the birth certificate and looked it over.

"Smart. You'll need this paperwork if you want to do anything other than breath in this day and age." Yugi said. His eyes immediately fell on Atem's new last name and who his parents now were.

"Atem Muto?!" Yugi gasped. This made Atem jump and drop the suitcase. Papers flew everywhere.

"Sorry Atem, it's just... Don't get me wrong, I love the idea of having you as a half-brother… but Kaiba just put it down in the records that my dad had a child with another woman! While he was married!" Yugi growled. Atem sighed as started collecting the papers. He thought that would be Yugi's reaction, though, he did not expect the outburst. Honestly, that would have also been his reaction too if someone had chiseled out his own father's history and gave him another son.

"It sadly makes a lot of sense Yugi. We look too much alike for it to be a coincidence. As soon as people see us together, they are going to ask questions. With your fame, people could easily look up and see that you were an only child growing up. I would have to be someone you somehow didn't know about. Your parents had no siblings so I can't be a cousin or a nephew and with your father being gone in other countries most of his working career…" Atem recited reasons died away under Yugi's glare. It wasn't that his glare was especially intimidating, it was just such a rare face for Yugi to make even Atem lost his confidence.

"I am not giving my dad a postmortem affair," Yugi stated flatly. He looked down at the paper then to the closed window blinds.

"Maybe you can be my son. I don't mind taking the scandal." Yugi said more to himself than to Atem "Perhaps I wasn't dating anyone when you were 'born'. Let's see, how old you are?" Yugi asked.

"Sixteen."

"Ok, sixteen then that makes it… sixteen?!" Yugi gasped. He quickly turned to Atem in surprise. "Sixteen?" Yugi asked again. "As in sixteen years old when you had to lead a country and sacrifice yourself?! That sixteen?" Yugi repeated. Atem felt a little indignation flare up inside him.

"Sixteen years old was not that young compared to other pharaohs. If you want an official count, I'm over five-thousand years old, but I doubt Kaiba could make a convincing birth certificate with that number." Atem pointed out. "It was also the same age that you were possessed by a crazy Egyptian spirit."

Yugi shook his head in awe and looked forward." Sixteen..." He was still for a minute. It was true that sixteen was when Yugi began his adventures, but his high school troubles seemed like nothing compared to the weights put on Atem's thin shoulders.

"…Anyway, sixteen years ago I… no that won't work, sixteen years ago was when I had that public break up with Téa. I don't need to reopen that wound by having the press find out I had an affair during that time." Yugi sighed. Atem perked up at those words. A curiosity of his had been growing ever since he heard that Yugi married Rebecca. Yugi must have noticed the interest because he sighed again.

"I was wondering if I would have to tell you that story," Yugi said.

"You are not the one that had to witness every single one of your teenage pinings over Téa, only to see you marry someone else," Atem said. Yugi chuckled.

"Ok, I suppose I owe you that." He said. He handed the certificate back to Atem. He carefully put the papers away and turned back to Yugi. Yugi nodded and look up to the ceiling.

"A year after the Diva incident, I went to America for a duel torment and was planning on staying there to get some intern work done at Industrial Illusions. While there I met up again with Téa in New York and we hit it off. I finally got up enough nerve to ask her out, as only me this time." Yugi gave a knowing smile to Atem. "She said yes and we dated for a few years after that." Yugi started to shift his weight around uncomfortable.

"Now remember that this all happened a long time ago and any negative feelings between us two have since been long buried. She is now and will forever be one of my very best friends. Heck, I don't even think we were mad at each other at the time. We were just kind of sad." Yugi glanced at the pharaoh for confirmation. Atem nodded. He remembered a few days ago Téa yelling through the video chat when she had heard that Yugi was badly hurt. Almost like a sister roaring about her brother's safety.

"Around the time she was about to graduate her dance school, she was picked out by this director. He was making this small musical movie and thought she would be the perfect love interest. We thought it was a little strange at the time since she had almost no experience acting or singing but this was a small movie, for film festivals and not theaters. I encouraged her to take it. She worked hard to fill the role, even going as far as to take many singing and acting classes. She really had a talent for it." Yugi smiled then continued.

"At that time, I moved out to California for some more gaming opportunities and she stayed behind to finish filming. We would talk over video call almost every day. Then two months in she just didn't call. A few days later she contacted me with an apology and saying everything was fine." Yugi shook his head.

"Our chats lowered to only a few minutes after that. She said she was busy and I was making my first game at the time so I never had a chance to really ask her what was wrong. Honestly, I should have made time, but hindsight is twenty/twenty as they say. Now I know that what was hurting her. It was something she dealt with most of dance school too. She was known as the King of Games's cheerleader, and only that. At first, it didn't bother her, she was even proud of the title. But as time went on and my fame rose, her own achievements seemed to shrink in others eyes. It especially hit her when I left for California. The filming crew suddenly had very little interest in her. The director going so far as to be… ah… in her exact wording 'I would call him an Ojama but that'd insult the cards'." Atem's eyes widened

"No."

"Yep, they hired her only so they get close to me. She just wanted to get the film done and get the whole thing over with. We even started talking again, then the movie came out. It was a humongous success. What was a little indie film skyrocketed into classic status." Yugi frowned at the memories. "We were just too immature at the time to take the strain of the paparazzi. They were always asking her how she felt about being the girlfriend of the King of Games and a star, or only being referred to as the 'girlfriend'. Add on us keeping the relationship long distance, have different goals in the long run, and some unsaid resentment still lying around. We broke it off. It was messy, to say the least. Fans were taking sides and both of us were getting threats."

Atem sat back in his chair trying to imagine such a thing. He had never truly known a threat such as the 'paparazzi' only seeing glimpses of it in Yugi's body. He could only relate it to his time being a diplomat with other countries, always walking a thin line and any wrong action would get you swarmed and eaten alive (sometimes literally if a shadow game was involved). He then imagined the proud Téa being reduced to only Yugi's love interest in everyone's eyes.

"As I said all this is long done. Téa got her revenge on the world. Most don't even connect her with me anymore. Now she's one of the biggest Hollywood stars." Yugi quickly added.

"I understand. I could not see Téa doing anything less." Atem said. Yugi sighed.

"There was a time that I regretted it. There were so many things I could have done better. But now I can look back on it as a time of growth. Because I went through that I was open to new experiences, like making a video game instead of a card game. And working Rebecca because of that." Yugi's smile returned. "Two of some of my best decisions if I do say so myself."

"You and your friends had quite a life before the Zero Reverse," Atem said.

"Speaking of friends, how often have they called?" Yugi asked as red flushed his cheeks. "My last words to them weren't exactly well thought out."

Atem laughed. "Yes, I believe they are all so confused that they have not called back, not counting Rebecca and Téa of course. Each call once every day. But even then, they only ask to see how you are doing. I think they are planning something." He said as he pointed to the new cellphone Diva left for the two.

"Oh…well, we'll deal with that when they call," Yugi said. He started to remove his blanket and swing his legs over the bed. Before Atem could stop him Yugi raised his hand. "I absolutely need a walk. You can't just tell a sad backstory and stay in bed afterward. You're not stopping me, so if you want to stop my pain, you'll help me get up." Yugi said. Atem frowned but did as Yugi asked. Yugi was so much thinner now. It almost looked like the wind could blow him down. Atem thought about calling the nurses but Yugi was determined. He was going to walk if it killed him again.

It was surprisingly easy to leave the room. The doctor the day before had unplugged most of Yugi's medical equipment. Now he was only connected to an IV which the two could bring with them. Yugi's joints groaned as they began to work again. He wasn't going very far. Atem noticed this. He quickly grabbed the cellphone and his suitcase and led Yugi to a small patio very close to his room. They were still many stories up so no cameras set on Yugi's window would notice them in there.

"It's nice to feel real sunlight again." Yugi sighed as he let the warmth envelop him. Atem nodded.

"Yes, you should have seen me the first day back. I was tempted to sit on top of the truck we used to drive you to the hospital, just so I could get more of it." Atem said as he studied a row of ants traveling across the path. The two's attention was then taken by a call coming from the cellphone.

"It's Rebecca," Atem said as he looked at the screen. "Do you want me to leave while you answer it?"

"No, we have to do this eventually. You ready for this Yami?" A strange warmth flowed through Atem at hearing his old nickname. Yugi didn't even seem to notice that he had used the name. Atem smiled nonetheless and the two nodded to each other. They found a small stone bench big enough for the two of them to sit on. Yugi pulled Atem close and took the phone. He lifted it above his head so that the camera got both of them in the shot.

"Hey!" Yugi grinned into the phone. Atem too smiled wide for the camera.

To the two's surprise, it wasn't just Rebecca on the other end. Instead a computer was set up so it could send a video chat of what Yugi guessed was his new living room. In the room was Rebecca, Téa, Joey, Bakura, and Mokuba all sitting in front of the camera. They each had unreadable expressions on their faces. Téa even clutched some papers in her hand. That changed as soon as they saw Atem next to Yugi. All their mouths dropped open. The tightly held papers fluttered to the ground and it was silent.

"Say something." Yugi whispered to Atem. Both their smiles were getting painful to keep up.

"….Yo." The room exploded in shouts and gasps.

* * *

"So, let's get this straight. You two needed to recreate the ceremonial battle to help save the world, but this time Yugi lost? So that meant Atem had to come back?" Téa repeated. The two in Egypt nodded. They had been explaining and re-explaining this story for the last hour. The story Yugi and Atem told might as well have been swish cheese for how many holes it had in it. But it was the best the two could do. Their mouths still refused to even hint at an afterlife, so they had to go on half-truths and guesses the others made.

"I am only here temporarily." Atem added. The group shifted in their seats.

"So how long do we have you for?" Téa asked. She had been the most tranquil out of everyone, calming the initial outroar and being the one to ask most of the questions. Apparently, these last few days she had been the one getting everyone together in one place and collecting question so they could ask them all at once.

"It is, unclear. But I am sure everyone will know when it is time. I will not simply pop out of existence." Atem said. This reassured Yugi about as much as it did everybody else. Even he still didn't know what brought Atem here. Was he leaving in a month, a year, tomorrow?

Every soul was still. No one spoke, most were either staring at Atem or trying to hide the fact that they were staring. Everyone suddenly jumped as Joey burst into laughter.

"You know what I have decided? I don't care anymore! We have Atem back! Our buddy! Why are we questionin' dis miracle?! We should be partyn' it up!" Joey whooped. This caused the others to smile and Yugi and Atem to relax. All the tension left the room in a wave of laughter.

"I'm happy you two are ok and back together. Nearly die again though and I'll kill you two." Rebecca laughed. Bakura then sat forward in his chair.

"I am quite happy to see you Atem. I know we never got to truly meet but I always counted you as a friend." Bakura smiled.

"Me too. I know my big brother was kind of obsessed with you and I hope you don't hold that against him. You were just kind of the first person he lost after our parents. He really doesn't deal with lack of control well… But he's working on it!" Mokuba added in.

"Oh ya! I'm sure Rebecca has told you but Seto is here in Cairo. He left us a get-well gift." Yugi said as he pulled the suitcase into view. "That reminds me. I need your guys' opinion on something." Yugi pulled out the birth certificate. While this debate started Atem looked to Téa. The entire time she had continued to stare at him. He had gotten so used to everyone averting their eyes from him that this sudden interest was starting to unnerve him. She wasn't frowning or smiling, just observing.

"What?! Dat's the perfect cover story! No offence Yuge, but your father wasn't exactly the type to care about dis kind of thing. Besides, I think he'd be honored to have Atem as an honorary son." Joey said. This got Téa's attention and she too joined the discussion. The group continued to debate about Atem being a new Muto until the sun went down. In the end, it was decided to keep Atem as a half-brother to Yugi by their father. No other Mutos lived to discredit the claim and no one on Yugi's mother's side was close enough to the family to know the difference. Yugi grumbled but agreed.

"Ok, so we figured out the father. Who is your new mother Atem?" Téa asked.

"I tried to look her up but the computer would not cooperate with me," Atem said as he looked down at the certificate. "All I know is that her name was Rena Goodwin."

* * *

A group consisting of the Muto brothers, Seto, and the Ishtars left Sunday morning just as Kaiba had expected. Diva and his family said goodbye in the hospital, after making sure Atem had a whole wardrobe of clothes. They said it was their small way of thanking him for all he's done for the world. Atem thanked them honestly but Yugi noticed a slight frown on Atem's face. Yugi asked him secretly about it. Atem admitted that though he loved the clothes, they were not quite right. Yugi smiled and promised to find Atem some leather and buckles when they got to Japan.

The crowd outside the hospital was massive, with duel fans and news media alike awaiting the return of the King of Games. They were very disappointed, as KaibaCorp security was through the roof. It was a good twenty feet between any of the public and Yugi Muto's group. All the cameras were at first trained on the King himself, but as the group got into a large limo a new face captured the media. An Egyptian teen that looked almost exactly like Yugi Muto. This mysterious face swept through the dueling world. Who was this child? Was he Yugi's?

Then when the group had made it into the air, KaibaCorp released a report they had made while Yugi was still in the hospital. It told all about how Yugi had been blasted by the Zero Reverse and lost all his memory. He had been living out in a remote village when he had sudden memories of Egypt (he had many friends there as the interview explained). He decided to follow those memories and ended up in Cairo. While there he met this boy Atem. Seeing the similarities in this boy brought back Yugi's memories. Atem was Yugi's half-brother. He never knew about….

"Dey really couldn't think of a better story?" Joey groaned over the video chat he had going during the report.

"Could you think of a better reason I suddenly disappeared and ended up in Egypt?" Yugi smiled.

"Just tell dem the truth. You were saving the world! Or are all our adventures still under wraps?" Joey yawned. It was late over in Domino city. Joey was the only one who chose to wake up to see the live report. Well, he said he chose to wake up, but Yugi had a sneaking suspicion that Joey had stayed up. What Yugi didn't know was if it was by choice.

"With Pegasus now gone, no need to incriminate the Ishtars, the US Government still keeping the Dartz incident secret… Ya, no one knows how many times the world was in danger." Yugi answered.

"Dat's bunk. At least make a better cover story! I could make up somethin' greater right now and I'm half asleep!"

"Well, we'll think of you next time we need a lie. You must be amazing at it with the amount of lies you have to tell yourself every day in the dueling circuit. Like that you are a competent duelist." Joey jumped at Kaiba's voice.

"Nyeh, what are you still doing up Kaiba? Don't werewolves need to stay away from moonlight?" Joey growled.

"If your brain couldn't process it, time is different here. It the afternoon for us Wheeler."

"Hey! A man could easily forget that, you slimy f-" Yugi ended the call. He didn't think it be good for Joey to yell at his boss. Even if this was a normal sparing match for the two. As he put down the phone the report came back into earshot.

"Atem was a child of Solomon Muto Jr. and Rena Goodwin. Rena died in childbirth and had disconnected any ties with her family (she only had two half-brothers as of earlier this year). Leaving Atem alone in the streets of Egypt."

"Where did you find her name?" Yugi asked. Seto shrugged.

"One of my scientists talked about her occasionally. He was one of those half-brothers. He barely remembered her and only knew that she was half Egyptian. Apparently, she had abandoned the family when he was five. When I was trying to find some woman to be Atem's 'mother' her name came up." Seto explained.

"She did indeed die after having a child sixteen years ago, the child lived. It took a lot of manpower just to find everyone connected to her. She had cut off ties so well that the child's father had no knowledge of the pregnancy. Even the child didn't know his mother's name until KaibaCorp connected the dots. It was perfect. Don't worry the child is being handsomely compensated for keeping his mouth shut." Seto added after Yugi's face pulled into a frown. Yugi then turned to the sleeping Atem. He was by the airplane window, the one he had been looking out of all day.

"You really did all that work in only a few days?"

"Of course, how can I have a rival if he doesn't exist in the public eye?" Seto ended. He continued on to his seat away from Yugi without another word.

Yugi then looked out his own window. This was a first-class private plane so it only carried the group and waiters. Most were napping after the hassle of the media, leaving Yugi and his thoughts of the women Rena. What a sad life to have cut yourself so completely from the world. Her own brothers hadn't known she was gone all these years. Not even her child knew her name. It must have been a lonely existence. Maybe now she'd get some recognition, even if it was false. What had driven her to do such a thing? Fear? Anger? Maybe she liked it like that. She would have had to like some part of it to voluntarily live such an empty life. Yugi's thoughts then turned to Atem. He was forced to do a similar thing to defeat Zoc. To lock away himself to the point that not even he knew his name, at such a young age.

Yugi looked back to Atem, the pharaoh was slightly shivering. He still hadn't gotten used to covering himself when it was cold. Yugi silently walked over and put his jacket on the teen. Past all the titles and supernatural powers, he was still just that, a teen. The being that Yugi had relied on so heavily when he himself was a teenager. Back then, even with Atem's own confusion and questions, he still promised to protect Yugi through all the monsters and shadows, heck, he probably protected Yugi in the act of getting himself in this world. Yugi nodded to himself then. It was his turn now. Whatever Atem had to do, Yugi would be the one to protect him this time around.


	15. Welcome to New Domino City

Atem slowly opened his eyes. He was still on the airplane but the sun had gone down. No wait, it was coming up. How long had he been out? He started to sit up when he felt something covering him. He looked down to see himself clutching Yugi's jacket. Atem smiled, Yugi must have put it on him sometime when he was asleep. Speaking of Yugi, Atem looked around the surprisingly spacious airplane for him.

The Ishtars were still sleeping together a few seats ahead and the seat across from Atem where Yugi originally sat in was empty. Atem quietly got up, holding the jacket close to him (Kaiba kept this plane at nearly freezing temperature). He walked down the walkway to the next room. It was the room Kaiba held business meetings and duels. Inside he heard Kaiba and Yugi discussing something,

"So, how much do I have to pay you?" Yugi asked. It was almost too nonchalant of a voice, but under that calmness, Atem could hear a determination in the man.

"For what? The flight or Atem's documents? Either way, forget it. I prefer to have you owe me a favor than money." Seto answered.

"Not that, however, I am grateful for those. I mean my company." Silences followed the statement.

Atem remembered the reports he had heard about KaibaCorp. Pegasus had been right, as soon as the shock over the Zero Reverse had diminished, KaibaCorp had used the confusion and newly empty CEO chairs to their advantage. They began buying every gaming company that was affected by the blast. Everything from Black Clown to Industrial Illusions.

"What about your company? I'm not bailing you out if that tiny thing has gone under while you were gone." Seto stated.

"I'm not asking you to…wait, you don't know how it's doing? You didn't take it over?" Atem could hear the surprise in Yugi's voice.

"Why would I? It had a few ok cards and video games and only one successful series. Add on your wife protects it like a guard Chihuahua. It was simply not worth the manpower to take it over." Kaiba stated. Atem leaned in closer, he did not know how Yugi would respond to Kaiba calling both his company and his wife small. Atem jumped back in surprise as Yugi burst into laughter.

"First Joey, then my company. Kaiba you are too kind. I'm starting to think a heart is growing in that icebox of yours." Yugi smiled as he got up. He quickly got to the door to avoid Seto's death glare. As he opened the door, he nearly ran into Atem.

"Oh, hey Atem. Good to see you up." Yugi chatted. "You want to talk over there, as in way over there?" He said as he led the pharaoh away. Atem looked back at the closing door to see a glint of a scowl, or maybe it was a smile?

"Oh Seto, what a strange man you are." Yugi smiled as he and Atem sat down.

"What makes you say that?" Atem asked.

"Nothing important. It just that Kaiba always seems to be in this weird place maturity wise. Sometimes he acts like a sane adult and sometimes he's back to being a proud eccentric teen. I suppose we can't blame him. His childhood would make anyone weird in the maturity department. Then again, I'm here talking about maturity after just purposely pushing his buttons so who am I to talk?" Yugi said more to himself then Atem. He then turned to the teen. "Either way, it is always interesting to talk to Kaiba." Atem nodded. This lead Atem to a question he had been asking himself for a while.

After the pharaoh and Seto had their battle in the afterlife Atem never knew what happened to the CEO. He knew Kaiba couldn't go back to the world of the living without losing something but Seto seemed just fine, even blessed with his youthful appearance. It was less than an hour that Seto was in the afterlife and he did not even try to take anything with him. Maybe the higher ups rewarded him for his speed with a blessing? Atem then remembered what the Higher Ups tried to do to Yugi and knew that wasn't right.

"You should have seen this one time, he was sure giving it to one of his employees. They dared turn the building's thermostat up by one degree. It was like he had asked Kaiba to donate his deck to charity." Yugi laughed. Atem smiled and held the jacket closer to him.

"All his buildings are this cold?"

"Yes, even when he walks around outside, he often has a fan with him. Just in case it gets too hot. Maybe he has some sort of health problem?" Yugi wondered.

* * *

The plane landed in New Domino city during the late morning. It turned out that Atem hadn't been asleep that long, they simply traveled the earth fast enough to chase the sun. When the plane landed both the brothers' hearts jumped with a mixture of excitement and fear. The skyline of the city had completely changed. Buildings that had been there since Yugi's childhood was now gone and new, taller buildings replaced them. If Yugi had been surprised at the changed Domino city when he first came here ten months ago, it utterly shocked him now. This was New Domino city; the old Domino was long destroyed.

"Everyone, stay together. Move quickly to the side of the plane and through the airport. Your friends and family are already waiting in the limo so please don't stop. Simply get in the vehicle." One of Kaiba's men instructed. This brought out one of Atem's worries he had been pushing away this entire trip. Everyone felt so uneasy around him now. While they did not seem to notice it in phone calls, how were his friends going to react now? Atem put on his signature stoic face as everyone was getting off the airplane. Yugi noticed this and put a comforting hand on the teen's shoulder.

"This is our friends, there is nothing to fear," Yugi said. Atem nodded to Yugi. He then noticed Yugi's own brave face (which was not nearly as convincing as Atem's) and couldn't help but smile.

"We will do this together," Atem said. The group was then led through the airport. The massive building was surprisingly empty. Yugi looked to Kaiba who shrugged.

"Bought out the airport for a bit. Less of a chance we'll get stopped." Seto stated. Yugi couldn't help but incredulously stare at the CEO.

Right outside was a parked black limo. The group was barely out of the airport when the side door of the limo shot open.

"Wait! You're supposed to stay inside!" The driver called but it was too late. Yugi found himself being tackled by AJ followed then by Rebecca. The two's force was so strong that it made Yugi fall back. Thankfully Odion was there to stop Yugi from hitting his head, not that Yugi would have cared. He was too happy to be brought down by a little thing like pain.

"Daaaad!" AJ cried into his Yugi's chest. Yugi hugged the two on top on his with all his strength. Atem took a step back to give Yugi some room only to find himself too being crushed from behind.

"Dere you are Atem! I ain't letting you go dis time!" Joey cried as he lifted Atem into the air. Then Bakura, Mokuba, and Téa streamed out of the limo to surround the group. Atem soon found himself being crushed in a massive group hug. Even Seto could not get away from the wave of affection, though he tried. Atem let the hug overwhelmed him. He was back with people who loved him. He couldn't help but think all the afterlife trouble had worth it, just for this moment. He then noticed goosebumps on the arms around him. It was the middle of October in Japan, not cold enough yet for goosebumps.

 _You are not supposed to be here. You're dead. You have a mission._

A chill swept through Atem, a specific chill that he was very familiar with. This was a numbing cold, as empty as it was hopeless. Only those trapped in a millennium item for five-thousand-years knew this. He slipped out of the hug and took a step away from the group. No one noticed.

The crowd was then ushered into the large vehicle and whisked away. It was all going by too quickly for Atem. Before he could blink the limo's door slammed behind him and the group, minus Seto and Mokuba, were standing in front of a tall fence.

Pass the iron bars was an unusually large yard. It was well taken care of compared to the rest of the city. While New Domino was no longer in ruins, things like public beauty was not a priority yet. Compared to the luscious yard the house was nothing special, medium sized with standard architecture. Despite this as soon as Yugi saw this his eye lit up.

"So, it really wasn't destroyed." Yugi marveled. Rebeca pulled Yugi closer to her in a side hug as she rested her head on his chest.

"We were truly lucky." She whispered. "The government even used this place as a shelter for a while. Don't worry, it's all ours now." She then hit a button in her pocket and the gates swung open. As the group headed in Atem lagged behind a few steps. He let the group laugh and chat as he looked around at his grown friends.

The first he noticed was Joey. He had grown tall, his hair following that rule too. He was still the tallest of the group. Marik had grown taller too, now that he had proper nutrition. His hair was much shorter, but not as short as Ishizu's now was. Odion now had no hair to speak of.

Bakura kept his long white hair but it was not as wild as it had been. It was now comfortably tied back behind his sweater vest. His eyes were back to being the bright green they had been when Yugi had first met him. Meaning that Bakura wasn't wearing his contacts anymore, but he didn't seem to be wearing glasses. Maybe he did that "laser eye surgery" Atem had heard about.

Rebecca was next to Yugi, holding little Chell in her arms. She had not grown much in height since Atem last saw her. She was only barely taller than him. She still wore her glasses too. She, however, was not as skinny as she had been. Atem quickly made a mental note not mention that observation to Rebecca.

Téa remained the closest to her younger self. While she wasn't as youthfully looking as Seto, she definitely did not look thirty-seven-years old. Her hair was short but it was much redder now. She wore expensive looking, but undeniable beautiful jewelry. She was currently laughing and joking with Rebecca, even occasionally taking the small baby from her arms. Atem's eyes then focused on Yugi's children.

Yugi had told Atem that they adopted because he and Rebecca couldn't have children of their own. These two kids came from completely different countries and had no ties to Yugi or Rebecca. Yet, maybe because Atem was looking for it, each child seemed to be a Muto. The ten-year-old boy skipping along next to his father was always smiling and chatting happily away. His skin was as dark as Atem's and his hair just as spiky. If he wanted to, he could dye parts of it magenta and blonde and it could pass for authentic Muto hair. The only startling difference was the boy's bright orange eyes. They bore into Atem.

The baby Chell had cried every time Atem had gotten close to her or even looked in her general direction. He did his best to stay away from her but he couldn't help be interested. Her hair was a bright magenta but her eyes were dark black. She was only a year old, yet she seemed to recognize Yugi. It made Atem slightly smile to see her reaching for comfort from her father every time Atem came close to her.

"Hey, you ok back there Atem? You're kind of quiet." Atem looked up to Téa holding the door open for him. Atem quickly hurried inside with a quick thank you.

"I'm surprised he's talked as much as he has. In Egypt, he said absolutely nothing!" Marik groaned. Atem then found himself in a headlock of Joey's. Joey rubbed his knuckles into Atem's hair.

"You just love to be mysterious don't ya Atem? Well now dat you can't hide in dat puzzle anymore, you're a lot less mystical. Especially when I can give you a noogie." Joey laughed. Atem sheepishly nodded. He didn't feel like explaining that when he first got his body, everything took much more energy to do. He literally did not have the energy to talk back then.

When Joey finally let Atem go the two chuckled and walked into the main room with everyone else. There were not many windows in this house and what windows did exist were covered with heavy curtains. The lack of sunlight was made up for by the bright interior. Atem couldn't help but feel at ease here. Everything was warm and soft if not a little messy.

"Sorry, I really didn't have time to clean up before you guys came. I wasn't planning on housing so many people at once." Rebecca exhaled.

"Don't worry about it Bec. With Joey and I finally getting hotel rooms and Mokuba no longer being here twenty-four-seven you should have much more space." Téa smiled.

"Just enough room for us to crash here for a bit? We kind of forgot to get hotel rooms ourselves." Marik admitted. Both Ishizu and Odion bowed in apology to Rebecca. She sighed but smiled.

"We always have room for friends." She happily said, though her shoulders drooped with fatigue. Yugi saw his wife's exhaustion. He ran over and scooped Rebecca off the ground in one motion.

"Hey, don't hurt yourself!" Rebecca called but she couldn't help but giggle as Yugi kissed her on the nose.

"I have been waiting to hold you for… months. Nothing's stopping me now." Yugi said. Atem looked over this scene with interest. When Yugi had first come to the afterlife the pharaoh had felt how physically strong he had become. While he believed that Yugi could and would carry his wife, often. The Yugi in front of him had been starved and fatally injured. He should not have gained his strength back that quickly.

"Come on Atem, I know love is strange but dere's no reason to stare." Atem jumped at Joey's voice behind him. He looked back to the tall man with an embarrassed smile.

"Sorry, I guess it is just weird to see from an outside perspective." Atem quickly made up. It had not been a total lie so Joey took it at face value.

"How about you help us make breakfast? I can show you the magic of the microwave." Joey smiled.

"I remember how a microwave works. I was with you guys for four years." Atem responded.

"The magic of the 3D printin' microwave," Joey added. This got Atem's attention and he followed the group into the kitchen.

* * *

Thedoorofdarknesshasbeenopenedyoushallinherititsdarkpowerswhatareyouimscaredofmyotherselfanevilspiritlivesinthatpuzzlebecauseofyoumyfamilywaslockedawayinyourtombanevilleaderraisedtheleviathanyourfamilykilledmywholetownfor7stupiditemsit'stheonlywaytolockZorcawayyouhavetosavetheworldagaindoyouevencareforusdidyouabandonedusdidwemeanthatlittlecomparedtoYugiIT'SGAMETIME

Atem jolted up, panting. His body was covered in a cold sweat. He was wholly surrounded by the darkness of the tomb. This was too suffocating, he could not take it anymore. Atem ran towards a door he could barely make out in the total blackness. When he opened it, he had expected to find millions of winding paths and doors, all taunting him. He instead found himself out in a hallway. He then heard the rhythmic breathing of the Ishtars in the front room. This brought Atem out of his panic. He wasn't in the puzzle, he was at Yugi's house. Atem fell against the wall in relief. He reached up and wiped away the sweat from his forehead. He was safe, he was alive… he needed water.

Atem quietly sneaked to the bathroom. He did not turn on the light and simply drank the water from the tap. When he was done, he looked up at the mirror as his eyes adjusted to the low light. He had not had a dream in over five-thousand years, not even in the Cairo hospital. What had it been that scared him so much? Atem tried to remember but there was nothing. He shook his head and started to head back to his room. As he walked, he heard voices coming from Yugi's and Rebecca's room. Atem glanced in the slightly opened door to see Yugi holding a crying Rebecca.

"When I heard that you were gone… It felt like the entire world fell out from under me and toppled on top of me at the same time…. I wanted to crawl into some dark hole and disappear but… A.J, Chell, the move…we had already sold the house in America…going to this destroyed city… I don't know how we did it…" She quietly sobbed into Yugi's chest. The entire time Yugi was whispering that she was amazing and that he wasn't going anywhere. Atem quickly left them, hoping not to have ruined their moment. As he sped to his own room something came flying out and hit Atem in the head. It had not hurt, it was soft even. He looked down to see a stuffed Watapon. He looked into the room to see Chell standing up in her crib. She looked to Atem then to the toy.

"You want this back?" Atem whispered. He retrieved the plushie and started to walk into the nursery. As soon as he took a step in the room Chell's face scrunched up and a cry started to build. "Wait please do not cry." Atem breathed. He did not want to bother Yugi and Rebecca now.

"I got it." AJ grabbed the doll from Atem's hand and brought it into the room. He held it in front of Chell and made it do a little dance. She smiled and happily took the doll. "Huh, no wonder you're not asleep yet. You don't have your Ba-Ba with you." A.J said. Atem looked in with confusion. What was Ba-Ba? AJ spoke only in English. In the afterlife, everyone spoke the same language unless you specifically did not want someone to understand you. Thankfully, it seemed like Atem was reborn knowing whatever languages Yugi knew. However nowhere in Atem's vocabulary did he know what a Ba-Ba was.

AJ dug through a toy chest and pulled out a Scapegoat plushie from the pile. Chell clapped and greedily snatched the toy away from AJ. The boy was not bothered by this in the least. Chell finally laid down and AJ closed the door behind him.

"It's her favorite toy. She can't sleep without it." AJ answered. Atem was still confused by the name.

"Isn't it a Scapegoat? Or is Ba-Ba its English name?" He asked. AJ looked up and down the hallway.

"I don't want to wake anyone." He whispered. He then pulled Atem into his room. He closed the door behind him, then flipping on the lights. Atem blinked as he found himself in a room completely cluttered with toys and games.

"No, you were right calling it Scapegoat. Ba-Ba is just what we named it." AJ still whispered. "Sorry, that must have been confusing for you. How much English do you know?"

"I can speak English fairly well. I can also speak Japanese and a little bit of Egyptian Arabic." Atem said. He then noticed AJ tilting his head as he studied Atem.

"Really? Didn't you live in Egypt your whole life? Wouldn't you know it better?" AJ asked.

"Err, no. They got that wrong in the report. I just met your father in Egypt." Atem quickly said.

"Oh. I'm glad you two found each other. Now I have an uncle! Even if you are a little creepy." The ten-year-old smiled as he climbed on top of his bed. Atem was taken aback by the boy's bluntness.

"I'm… creepy?"

"Yeah, I don't know why though. You haven't done anything, like, at all, but I'll figure out why soon. I like to figure stuff out." The boy smiled. "Things like Santa, or the Tooth Fairy. I always connect the dots. Don't worry uncle, I'll figure you out too." Atem suddenly felt like those orange eyes were staring right into his soul, studying and remembering every fault and fact it found. Atem, wanting to change the subject, looked around the boy's room. His eyes rested upon a duel disk.

"You duel?" Atem asked.

"Of course! Who doesn't duel?" The boy said as he hopped off the bed and walked over to the disk. "I used to be really good at it too." Atem looked down at the boy as he lovingly flipped through his cards.

"Used to be?"

"Yeah, everyone here uses Japanese cards. I can't read them so I don't know what's coming until it's too late." AJ sighed. He then put away the cards and looked up to Atem. He said his next words in fairly good Japanese. "I can speak Japanese but… I don't know why, but I can't figure out how to read any of the ways they write! You'd think with three separate writing systems I'd pick up one but... It's really embarrassing too because now I have to ask for help from my teacher all the time. I can't even get my reputation back by dueling." AJ frowned. "I don't want to bother Mom about it since she is already so busy. And with Dad barely being back…" The boy looked up to Atem. Atem honestly didn't know what to do. What was his place in this? Being an uncle was a new role for him. His own uncle had not exactly been close, more of an adviser than a family member. AJ was clearly looking for some sort of comfort, even if Atem was creepy to the boy.

"I can teach you if you wish?" Atem tried.

"Promise?" AJ asked with big hopeful eyes.

"I promise."

"Perfect! I have school from 8:30 to 3:00. I can see you afterward." Atem then found himself pushed out of the room with a "Goodnight!" Back in the dark hallway, Atem blinked in both confusion as well as in light adjustment.

He slowly walked back to his own room. The room was just as dark as it had been before. Atem sighed and slunk to bed, making sure to leave the door open this time. What was he going to do? He had just made a promise to his, what was it, nephew? But he had a bigger promise to keep. Now that Yugi was safe Atem had to focus on his own mission. If he ever wanted to see his Egyptian family again, he would have to save the world. How would he even begin such a monumental task? He thought about tell Yugi about it but… He just couldn't do that to him right when he got back. It was his own mission and it would stay that way. It was just him and his dark room.


	16. New Rare Hunters

"You really don't have to do this Yugi. You just got back, you need to rest!" Rebecca begged. Yugi shook his head and continued to collect his things. Yugi had only relaxed one day in New Domino city before declaring that he was going back to work.

"I've had enough rest to last a lifetime. I am going to our company and I am going to work on a game." He stated. Rebecca looked back to Atem and the Ishtars for help. Atem simply shrugged his shoulders. Yugi had grown much more confident in his decisions in the last eighteen years. Atem didn't think he could not stop the man even if he wanted to.

"Come on Bec, I am going to need my partner there if I want to understand what we are doing. I'm sure you guys have advanced so much. Especially on translating our newest game." Yugi said. Rebecca's eyes narrowed and she pushed her glasses farther up her nose.

"Well of course we have, it's almost done in fact! We only need to work on the names of the move and you know that takes thousands of…" Rebecca continued on into tech talk that Atem could not even begin to understand. This distracted her enough for Yugi to start leading her to the door with no more arguments. When Rebecca was out the door, he quickly turned back to Atem.

"Are you sure you are ok today?" He asked.

"Of course he is, he's hanging out with us at the museum. Ishizu needs to get some work done there and we volunteered to help." Marik answered for Atem. Yugi closely studied Atem and Marik.

"I wanted to see the old museum and explore the city. This seemed like the best way to do both." Atem said. This was a half-truth and Yugi knew it. The way Atem stood and worded his sentence told Yugi all he needed to know. Yet, he couldn't figure out why Atem would lie about such a mundane thing. Atem simply smiled.

Yesterday, the entire group had decided that they all would volunteer to rebuild the city this weekend and every weekend afterward until Téa's and Joey's vacation ended. With Yugi now being gone with work, Atem had many quiet days ahead to figure out his world-saving mission. It was his problem and his alone. After much debate, Atem decided what better place to start searching then where he learned his own destiny all those years ago?

"You have my number if anything happens right?" Yugi asked.

"Hmhm." Atem nodded.

"And our old deck?" Yugi quickly added. Atem reached into his back pocket and pulled out their Battle City deck. It had apparently been on a world tour until the last year. Yugi used different cards now so he happily gave the deck to Atem.

"Yes, I have it right here. Though, I do not plan to duel today." Atem added with a hint of confusion.

"Trust me Atem. Whether or not you want to duel you're going to need that deck if you are in public. Any small dispute is solved with card games now. This deck's based on the old rules so it might be a bit challenging to use it in today's rule set. It'll just have to do until we can build you a new deck." Yugi smiled. He waved off the group and headed to the car. AJ had already left for school and Chell was dropped off at daycare. It was just Atem and the Ishtars.

"We ready to go? The museum is still in walking distance so we don't have to call a cab." Ishizu said. Everyone nodded and headed out. As they walked Atem stared at the surrounding scenery. This city was able to completely rebuild itself after Zero Reverse. Streets and buildings no longer followed the path Atem remembered. Instead, great sharp and metal mammoths replaced any destruction.

"Those lanes over there are for the self-driving cars. These kinds of streets are really popular in Asia but most cities couldn't add them since it required building whole new roads. But when you have to build from square one you might as well build the best." Marik chatted. Atem marveled at the cars with no drivers passing by. He barely understood how normal vehicles worked, how did they move with no driver? Atem then noticed many small logos picturing a Blue-Eyes White Dragon wearing a construction hat plastered around the city.

"KaibaCorp?" Atem asked as he pointed to the logos.

"They were the main rebuilders of the city. In fact, you could say over seventy-five percent of the city is made by them now." Ishizu said. "Including rebuilding this museum." Atem looked ahead to see a giant white building surrounded by interactive holograms and fountains. Since it was a weekday Atem had expected the museum to be fairly empty like it had always been. But in front of him was a building surrounded by crowds of people.

"Kaiba went all out for this place," Odion said. The others nodded.

"Come on we have a lot of work today. It will be mostly moving paper records into the computer but I need strong men like you guys to help carry boxes. After we're done you can gawk at the building." Ishizu said as she led the group inside.

...

With the rebuilding of the city, the museum thought it was time to reorganize its records. Even though Ishizu did not work here she volunteered to do the Egyptian and Duel Monsters part of it.

"There are still a few things that shouldn't be released to the public yet regarding you and duel monsters. That's why I decided to be the one to reorganize everything, despite the distance." Ishizu explained. Atem put down another stack of boxes. He couldn't help but stare as she quickly scanned the paper and with a few button presses put all the information into the computer. She noticed him staring and smiled.

"I forget, we take most of this technology for granted but for you, these things are miracle workers." She said. Atem nodded as he looked closer at the computer screen.

"Things have advanced much from even the time I was with Yugi. It is sometimes hard for me to keep up." Atem said. A thought then came to him, but how to word it? "I hear that these new computers can pull information from anywhere in the world in a matter of seconds. Is that true?"

"Milliseconds. I can even show you now. What do you want to know?" Atem went silent as he thought about his next words.

"Can you get anything on the Earthbound Immortals?" Atem asked. Ishizu looked back at Atem in mild surprise.

"Where did you hear about them? Their name slightly rings a bell to me." She asked. Atem remembered back to what the Higher Ups were worried about during the trial of Yugi. While they never said it outright, they were clearly sending Atem back to the world of the living to deal with these Immortals. If they caused enough trouble to be locked in the netherworld and strong enough to send parts of their power to the afterlife, they had to be saving the world worthy.

"It is a name I heard from some strangers. Thought it sounded interesting." Atem said. Thankfully Ishizu never had to share a brain with Atem for four years. She bought the lie with no questions.

"Hmm, let me see… Oh, they're an old South American folktale connected with the Nazca Lines." She said as she pulled up an aerial image. This picture showed humongous white lines painted into the ground to look like various animals. Atem immediately recognized them, they looked exactly like the neon outlines of the shadow creatures.

"Is there any more information on them?" Atem quickly asked.

"Why? Are you looking for a prophecy on them?" Ishizu joked.

'Yes.' Atem thought.

She tapped more keys as Atem looked over her shoulder. "There's not a lot on them. Not even a substantial Wikipedia article. Oh, there is a small exhibit on them."

"Where?!" Atem leaned forward to read the page while roughly pushing Ishizu aside.

"It's in this very museum actually, that must be where I recognized the name. Destiny or what?" Ishizu smiled. Atem nodded and ran out of the room. "Wait, there is still some work that needs to be done!" Ishizu called but Atem was already down the hallway. He passed Odion but did not stop. He soon found himself in the bustling museum exhibits. He quickly found a map and scanned it for the location. If he took the path through the butterfly dome he could cut right to the display. Atem took off again, running along the marble floors until he found the door to the dome. He threw it open and ran inside. He was surrounded by flowers of every kind. There was one particularly beautiful rose bush that caught Atem's attention for a split second. This split second was enough for Atem to run right into the back of a man.

"Hey, kid! no running in the dome! It disturbs the butterflies. I just might have to duel ya if you keep doing that!" Came a shrill voice. Atem looked up to see a man just an inch taller than him with blue hair and thick yellow glasses.

"Weevil?" Atem breathed. Weevil adjusted his glasses in surprise.

"Who are you? Some Yugi fanboy?" Weevil growled.

"I, I am Atem. Yugi's brother." Atem stuttered as he stood back up.

"Oh, I heard about ya on the news. Let me guess Yugi talks about me all the time. We were best friends and rivals back in the day." Weevil claimed with his usual sneer. He was blocking the door. It took everything in Atem's power not to punch the man aside and keep running. He had no idea how Yugi forgave so many people. Be it, villains or bullies, if they showed even a flicker of kindness, he gladly accepted them back. Atem tried to do the same, for Yugi's sake. But there were a few he could never forgive, and Weevil Underwood was near the top of that list.

Just remembering the Exodia cards or the duel on the train, especially the dual on the train, made Atem's hands ball into tight fists. As always, Atem hid this true anger under a veil of kingly regal. Past his calm face, he could almost feel the shadows whispering to start a shadow game like they had when he was first woken up from the puzzle. In fact, was he actually hearing them?

That thought shot ice up his spine. Atem started glancing around just to make sure he wasn't hearing someone whispering nearby. True fear started to set in when the whispering didn't go away. He had locked the shadow games away, he shouldn't have the power to start one, no one should.

"Hey kid, you ok?" Weevil asked. He reached out and turned Atem around to face him and immediately fell back. "Ahh!" For a second, Weevil thought he saw the face that tormented his dreams. He didn't remember much after he and Rex joined Dartz. One second, he was in San Francisco, the next he was at a hospital in the middle of the California desert. But one shadowy memory managed to break through the fog. Pain, a train horn, and a crazed face shrouded in darkness. But just as soon as it came, the fear disappeared. In front of him was just an (admittedly eerie) teen, nothing more.

"Weevil are you ok?!" Both Weevil and Atem turned back to the rose bush. Behind it came out a woman with long curly red hair. She was about a head taller than Weevil.

"Kaoruko! It's nothing, just got surprised that's all." Weevil said. Atem could not help but stare at the women as she ran to Weevil's side. That name, he recognized it?

"Oh, Weevil don't do that to me, I almost cut off one of the rosebuds." Kaoruko cooed as she pulled Weevil into an embrace. Atem rolled his eyes and looked away from the love birds. All thoughts of the shadows gone. Those two were still standing right in front of the door to the South American part of the museum. Why could they not move?

"Hehe, next time you see our old pal you're free to tell him how well my girlfriend and I are doing. I've seen on TV how his wife has gained a little weight. Nothing too big, it's obviously worry weight with him being gone. But if she needs any dieting tips, she's free to ask Kaoruko here. She loves to help people." Weevil snickered. It took all Atem's will not to audibly groan.

"I will tell Yugi, now could you please step away from the door?" Atem sighed. This got Kaoruko attention.

"Yugi?" She almost whispered. She then looked down at Atem. She screamed and fell back pulling Weevil down with her.

"You ok?" Atem asked as he stretched out his hand to help her up. She slapped the hand away.

"I've learned my lesson I swear! I got the last rose, I got the last rose!" She screamed as she continued to back up, right over the fallen Weevil. Atem was frozen in place. He had no idea what would cause this reaction. Was the power that made him so unnerving affecting her worse? Whatever it was, him standing here would only frighten her more. He gave one last apologetic look to the two and ran out of the dome.

As the door closed behind, Atem looked back through the glass. Kaoruko was curled into a ball by her rose bush with Weevil trying to calm her down, and failing. As she shook the rose bud that she almost cut off finally fell and landed on her head. The memory came flooding into Atem. A young self-absorbed teen that ripped the dress of rival. For her crime, she was subjected to a shadow game and lost. Atem shuddered at the memory, not his finest moment. He almost wanted to go back in and apologize but what could he say? Sorry for the years of therapy, but at least you learned that beauty goes deeper than the surface? Atem shook his head and continued on to the place where the exhibit was supposed to be.

Atem turned a corner and ran into a darkly lit corridor with many ancient artifacts lit behind thick glass. Ahead was a large block of grey rock. On it was craved what looked to be 6 dragons. Atem ran right to the velvet rope keeping him from touching the rock. He bent over and read the description on it.

 _This depicts six dragons and six signers (humans blessed by the dragons) protecting the People of the Stars from what early archeologist guessed was a great evil. This great evil was later translated out to mean "Earthbound Immortals." It is said that these Signers will reincarnate if the Immortals ever return. Many point-out that these carvings look like the duel monsters that are also depicted in Atlantean or Egyptian ruins. This might be because-_

Atem blinked as the rock was suddenly moved by a whistling man.

"What are you doing?" Atem asked.

"Sorry kid, this exhibit is done." The man said as he charted away Atem's only hint to what in Slifer's name he was supposed to be doing. Atem ran after the man and found himself outside the museum. The man packed away the artifact in a white van filled with other items related to the People of the Stars.

"Wait! At least let me take a photo of that description." Atem begged. Before he could stop the worker, another bigger man stepped in front of him. Atem once again ran right into him and fell back.

"Haha, who's this? Some Yugi wannabe? Trust me, kid, get lost unless you want to duel a real expect." The man laughed. Atem slowly got to his feet. He pulled out his deck and the man's laughter lessened.

"You serious? Well fine, if you want to be beaten that badly." The man pulled out his own deck but before either of them could draw the door behind them was pushed open.

"There you are Atem!" Ishizu shouted. She then noticed the van and the artifacts inside. "Thieves!" she screamed. The two men immediately ran to the front of the van and started to race away.

"Don't worry sister, I got them!" A loud engine roar got Atem's attention as Marik turned the street corner on a motorcycle. Atem's eyes narrowed and he ran in front of Marik.

"Take me too!" Was all he said. Marik nodded and Atem hopped onto the back of the bike. Without another word, the two raced off after the van.

...

"Have you called the police yet? Take a picture of their license plate if you can!" Marik yelled as the two chased the van through some back streets that were not quite fixed from the Zero Reverse.

"Where did you get this motorcycle?" Atem asked as he lifted up Marik's phone to take the picture. Now he was thankful for Diva and Sera taking the time to explain this modern technology to him back in Egypt.

"Err, hehe, absolutely not shirking the job Ishizu gave me and cleaning my bike instead." Marik nervously laughed. Atem was able to take the picture but then a large crack in the road caused the bike to jump. Atem nearly lost his phone and his seat. "Sorry! I can't slow down or else I'll lose them." Marik yelled. Atem nodded and decided to focus on calling the police.

The van took another sharp turn, right into a construction site. Marik had to stop or else the two would have blown through a row of orange cones.

"Should we follow?" Marik asked.

"The dispatcher said to stop following them because it was unsafe. I got a photo of the license, we at least have that. Also, Ishizu just called. She wants us back so we do not get hurt. Or more, she ordered us back." Atem said. Marik sighed and watched as the van grew farther in the distance.

"Ok, that's two authorities that told us to stop because it was dangerous. I just hate to let thieves like that get away." He growled. Atem then noticed Marik's eyes light up. He asked for the phone which Atem gladly gave. "Then let's make it safe." Marik texted to what looked like a group text.

"What did you just do?"

"Well, we can't follow because it's unsafe. And I agree, I don't feel like taking a young kid somewhere where we can get jumped." Marik said. Atem frowned at the young kid comment.

"I am about the same age as when you attacked us. We didn't seem that young back then." Atem said before he could think. He immediately regretted his comment because Marik flinched. He seemed almost sick at just the memory. "I am sorry, that was a low blow." Atem quietly said.

"It's fine, but I'm still not bringing you somewhere dangerous, so we're not." What sounded like the roaring of an Egyptian God suddenly came racing up behind the two. Atem turned to see a large gang of bikers fly by. They all had a familiar eye symbol on their clothing.

"The Rare Hunters?" Atem gasped.

"Not quite," Marik smiled. "The Rare Hunters as you knew them have been long disbanded. I even helped to make sure it stayed dead. But five or so years ago when I opened up my vehicle garage in Domino city, some old members and fans recognized me from Battle City. They didn't want to do evil, they simply wanted to hang out and work on bikes. So, I guess you could say I ended up their leader again." He laughed.

"You had fans from Battle City?" Atem asked. The only time anyone would have seen Marik would have been when he was taken over by his darker side. Atem wasn't sure how you got fans from slowly torturing people with card games.

"Yeah, I thought it was creepy too. But my other side was good at the game and that's all some people care about. Most of those kinds of people left shortly after they met the real me." Marik grumbled. A text got the two's attention.

 _We found their warehouse Pharaoh_

Atem looked to Marik with a wicked smile on his face. "Pharaoh?" He snickered. The phone was snatched out of Atem's hand and hidden from view.

"Oh, it just a nickname they call me it's nothing much it's not like I asked them to call me that." Marik speedily stuttered as he studied the text. "I know where that is, come on. We can find it and then call the police again. It'll be safe now since there about ten other good duelists surrounding the place. I would trust them with my life." Marik said at a much slower speed. He started the motorcycle again and the two rode to a warehouse near the docks. The perimeter was guarded by a ring of bikers with the two thieves stuck inside the building.

"Hey there Pharaoh! Glad you could make it!" One of the bikers smiled as Marik rode up.

"Ixnay on the araohphay." Marik whispered as the two got off the bike.

"We got everything covered, they ain't getting out and the police has been called to this location."

"Great work guys, I truly appreciate everyone coming so quickly." Marik smile to the group.

"We'd come at any time for you!" Another large biker smiled as she pulled Marik into a friendly hug. The others laughed as Marik was pulled off his feet by the large women. Atem gave a friendly smile, however, the other members did their best to stay away from him. When Marik could finally get away from the vice grip he stumbled over to Atem.

"So that was Roseanne and over there is Haruto, Riku…"

"They really look up to you," Atem said after Marik named every member.

"Huh? Oh yeah, they're the best." Marik said to Atem then turned to the New Rare Hunters. "I don't know how I'll repay you all for this."

"You can repay us by finally asking Bakura out! We've waited for years for you and that elementary teacher to finally get together. Stop leaving us in suspense!" One of the bikers yelled from the back. Marik's face went bright red as everyone laughed. As the group continued to chat the warehouse door opened an inch and one of the men tried to slip away.

"Hey! Don't you move! If you try to escape, you'll have to duel the famous Marik Ishtar, the runner up of the first Battle city finals!" One of the bikers screamed. The thief squeaked and ran back inside the warehouse. The others once again burst into laughter, everyone but Marik.

"Ok everyone, let's spread out and make sure they don't get away by some back door," Marik ordered. The New Rare Hunters followed without a second's hesitation. "I'll take this boy with me." He said as he led Atem away to a vantage point to watch for the police. The others seemed relieved to no longer have Atem by them. Marik and Atem sat down on a large iron beam and waited in silence for a minute or two.

"The famous Marik Ishtar?" Atem asked. Marik grumbled in response.

"I love my group but I hate it when they call me that. I haven't touched the deck my other self made in over twenty years. Bakura says I should at least use some of those cards in a new deck but I just can't do it. And that fact has also gotten me into a lot of trouble before." Marik sighed. Atem nodded and decided to stay quiet but Marik continued. "I just don't know how Bakura does it! He still uses the deck his evil side made, often! I've even seen him battle his students with it. Sure, it's not a shadow game anymore but I just don't understand how he can still use it." Marik ranted. Atem leaned back in surprise. Where was this coming from? "It's not just that! He often talks about how he hopes his other self is doing ok and hopes he got reincarnated. He still has the scars on his chest from where that monstrous item dug into him!" Marik huffed.

"He… Misses his other side?" Atem asked.

"No, no nothing like that. He's always very adamant that his other side did horrible things, somethings that can never be forgiven and he's glad he's gone. But… it's… just." Marik fumbled to find the words.

"It seems like Bakura was able to move on while you can't get past your experiences with your other side." Atem cut in.

"Yes! Thank you." Marik smiled for a brief moment before a mixture of sadness and embarrassment washed over his face. His face went an even brighter shade of red as he covered his face with his hands. "That just came out of nowhere didn't it? I'm sorry, I shouldn't have unloaded all that on you." Atem looked around trying to find some way to comfort this man. He must have been holding in those emotions for a while if he had to let it out on Atem of all people.

"Is that why you don't ask Bakura out?" Atem asked. Marik's face was now an almost purple color.

"NO, no, nooo. Just-just forget I said anything ok?" Marik tried. Atem continued to wait for Marik to explain. Marik sighed and reached into his pink shirt pocket. He pulled out his deck and looked over the cards.

"I've never been able to build a deck, as well as my evil side did. I have tried using those cards again, but just looking at them makes me sick… Everything regarding that time of my life makes me sick. You don't know how hard I fought even the name New Rare Hunters. Then I look over to Bakura and he's prancing through his memories like it's nothing." Marik sighed again. "Oh, Bakura… When I first came to live in Domino, Yugi and his friends were kind to me but distant, for obvious reasons. It was Bakura that really reached out to me and made me feel welcome. He even invited me to be on his RPG podcast even though I had no idea what I was doing. Then he takes me on all his supernatural studies. You know he says he still has a connection to the afterlife? That's actually come into use a few times." Atem nodded and listened intently to everything Marik said, even if he had no idea what a podcast was.

"It sounds like you two are close. I can see why his attitude towards the past affects you so." Atem said.

"He really has been my lifeline these last few years. I've only ever left his side when the Zero Reverse destroyed my house here. I was living with my family until it could be fixed. That's when you came crashing into our lives." Marik smiled at the memory. Atem sat back trying to find the words. Of all his strengths why couldn't one be reassuring others?

"To be honest Marik I don't know what to say. What you two have gone through is very different from my experiences. Mostly because I was often the parasitic spirit. But… I don't think your weak for not moving on as Bakura has. Everyone deals with… things like that differently. His way is not any better than your way. It might be best for you to never think of your other self again and it might be better for Bakura to smile at his memories. That doesn't make him on any higher emotional level then you…" Atem started. He then noticed Marik staring intently at him and Atem felt his own face heating up. "Can you pretend I did not say anything either?" Atem admitted. Eventually, the blonde haired Egyptian smiled and leaned back.

"I think I finally know what brought all this up."

"Your friends embarrassing you?" Atem joked.

"No, though I'm sure that did help. You're just easy to talk to." Marik said. That took Atem by surprise.

"Me? Easy to talk to? I think you have the wrong person. Yugi is who you are thinking of." Atem said. Marik shook his head and looked forward.

"That is true, Yugi has always been the group's heart. I think he knows more dark secrets than anyone else thanks to his easy nature. But whenever he needed to talk to someone, he'd talk to you. You don't give yourself enough credit." Marik said. Before Atem could answer sirens blared as three cars drove up to the warehouse.

"Ahh, the police!" Marik yelled as he hopped up. Atem stayed sitting. He had seen the city police and these cars looked nothing like those. A group of men hopped out of the new cars and raced to the warehouse. They pushed past the bikers and went right into the building. Behind them, a short man with curled purple hair stepped out of the car. Atem could not help but think this man looked like a clown.

"Are you two the ones that chased these men into this warehouse?" The small man asked.

"Yes, it's about time the police got here! If it wasn't for all these people the crooks probably would have gotten away." Marik explained. The short man raised his hand to silence Marik.

"First off, we are not the police, we are Sector Security. There is a large difference, my name is officer Lazar by the way. Secondly, these men were not thieves, they were paid by the man that donated those artifacts to help move them back into his house." Lazar corrected. Atem's and Marik's mouths dropped open as the men were led out of the warehouse.

"Then why were they running?!" Marik demanded.

"Because we were being chased by a crazy man-girl and a terrifying kid on a motorbike." One of the thieves yelled as they were led to the security's cars. Both Atem and Marik gritted their teeth as the men passed them.

"Haha, Man-girl, and what terrifying child...?" Lazar started to snicker but then he got a good look at Atem and a shiver leaped up his spine. "Hehe- Anyways, I say we should all put this embarrassing situation behind us and move on. Just don't go chasing strange men in the streets anymore, it could get you into real trouble." Lazar laughed as he too started heading for his own car.

"Hey wait a moment! Things don't quite add up. If they were supposed to be moving the artifacts why wasn't the museum notified? My sister would have known they'd be there and not yelled. And where are the artifacts even going? You said someone donated them to the museum. People who donate things to the museum can't just take them back when they want. Donating them means they belong to the museum!" Marik objected.

"You are right," Lazar said with a condescending smile. "These men forgot to get the proper paperwork done and that is an illegal offense. Do you know what else is an illegal offense? Driving in a construction zone, riding a motorbike without a helmet, and a motorcycle gang meeting in a public location without a permit." Everyone shifted around uncomfortable. "But I know you were only doing what you thought was right. So, I am electing to ignore all offenses and simply move on." The man bowed to the group and headed back to the car. The van was soon driven out of the warehouse by Sector Security. Atem had to watch as his only information drove away.

"Come on Atem, let's get out of here." Marik breathed. This caused Lazar to turn around and look at Atem.

"Your name's Atem huh?" A shiver went down Lazar's spine again as Atem and his gaze met. "You're Rena Goodwin's son, right?" The clown asked. Atem gave a noncommittal nod. "I work for your remaining uncle, Rex Goodwin. He is the director of Sector Security actually. Even though he never knew his half-sister, we don't want him finding out his nephew got into trouble, do we? Let's stay safe now!" Lazar laughed as he got in the car and drove away.

...

"What a slimy little Crass Clown!" Joey declared over dinner.

"I know! And the entire time he was laughing at us. I swear if I ever see him again it'll be more than just a "man-girl" he'll have to deal with." Marik declared as he flipped out his pink shirt collar.

"Now brother, it was our fault things got out of hand. Let's just be glad no one got hurt." Ishizu said as she rested her hand on her brother's shoulder.

"I'm sorry I missed all that. It was school time when you texted the New Rare Hunters." Bakura said.

"You could have left class, Mr. Bakura. Us kids wouldn't have minded." A.J said. "You should have totally used your Graveyard deck on them! That would have shown them!" A.J preceded to act out the attacks and reactions of the fallen men with his food. Atem laughed then turned back to Bakura.

"You're part of the New Rare Hunters? You have a motorcycle?" Atem asked.

"Yep, Marik made it for me himself. It's actually out in the driveway if you want to see it." Bakura answered. Atem then noticed Marik fidgeting in his seat.

"Hey, Bakura… Do you mind if I take a look at that bike? I think I saw something out of place." Marik finally croaked.

"Sure? What's wrong with it?"

"How about you come out with me and I'll show you?" Marik nervously said. Bakura raised an eyebrow but followed Marik out the door. Everyone remained in their seats, not even looking at the two until the door shut behind them. Everyone immediately ran to the window, nearly running over Atem.

"Is he finally going to do it? He better do it!" Rebecca squeaked. She was soon pushed away from the window by an excited Joey.

"If he asks him out now, I win da bet!" he giggled.

"What is going on?" Atem asked. Yugi looked back to Atem and grinned.

"We've all had a bet going on when those two would finally get together. Honestly, we would have all lost years ago since those two took so long. Marik always felt inferior to Bakura and because of that Bakura didn't feel like he could ask out Marik without making him feel forced."

"I guessed in dis century, I said dis century and looky here!" Joey smiled. He was soon pushed away by the combined power of Rebecca and Téa.

"I still don't think we should count that bet," Téa said. Bakura's laugher soon danced in from the outside and everyone pushed up against the window. A smiling Bakura was hugging Marik tightly.

"Yes, now kiss!" Joey cheered.

"Joey the just got together, they're not going kiss now." Téa reminded.

"Oh, come on, we're adults. We are mature enough to be able to kiss the first date." Joey smiled.

"Yes, we're so mature that we are making bets and stalking another's love life. Adults at their finest." Rebecca groaned. Yugi pulled everyone away from the window and made everybody promise to keep quiet until the two shared their relationship status publicly. As everyone pretended to eat Yugi bent over to Atem.

"Geez, what happened today that caused this change? He's been literally chickening out for the last five years."

"I don't know, maybe he just had to get something off his chest before he could move on?" Atem guessed. Yugi shrugged.

"I thought I'd start summoning shadow games before this ever happened." Yugi laughed. Atem stopped mid-bite.

"Shadow games?"

"Oh, I'm joking here Atem. Can you see me causing a shadow game? Don't answer that." Yugi playfully poked at Atem's ribs and went back to his own food. Atem nervously laughed and looked down at his plate.

"Yes, shadow games... By the way, I met a few old friends today." Atem said, trying to ignore the horrible thought in the back of his mind. He locked away the shadow games, Zorc and all. They could not come back even if he was alive again. But then, what was silently whispering to him when he was with Weevil?


	17. The Cold Dueling Track

**Author's note: Thanks to Silvergolddragon for the character suggestion.**

It had been many days since the warehouse. Yugi still worked in his company every day and appeared to be enjoying it. (Though Rebecca seemed to be the main office worker in the household. Doing the most coding for games and staying the latest.) He also started exercising again, despite objections. He kept getting stronger until he was back to being as healthy as he was before, maybe even better. All in a week. This surprised everyone, even Yugi. No one heals that quickly from near death. While Yugi took it as a perk of his healthy lifestyle, Atem was more suspicious of it. This was absolutely the power of the Higher Ups, but why? This sudden healing did not seem like it had any drawbacks. Atem could only hope it was a gift and not a curse in disguise. He couldn't focus too much on Yugi as he had his own problem.

Every little piece of information that was even slightly related to the Earthbound Immortals seemed to disappear over the coming days. Anything from the Signers, to the dragons, to the People of the Stars vanished. All records from the museum had was taken, any mention of it in books was scrubbed out, even the tiny Wikipedia article was deleted. What was worse was this "Sector Security" seemed to be at every dead end.

"I think it's pretty cool that you got to ride in a Sector Security car, buuut it was still unfair. Like, how were you supposed to know that book had been reported stolen? You literally found it in a library!" AJ said. Atem nodded and sighed at the memory.

"I'm sure I gave Rebecca and Yugi quite the heart attack coming back home surrounded by men in black." Atem frowned, but AJ giggled.

"Hmhm. You know how Dad is about media near our house. Now imagine his reaction when he saw security jumping our big fence and walking you in." AJ smiled.

"All that and I did not even get to keep the book," Atem said more to himself. AJ shrugged and placed down a monster card on the table. He then bent over to write his next move on paper. The two Mutos were the only ones home other than the sleeping Chell upstairs. In front of them was a Duel Monsters battle with a few differences. Atem had taped the Japanese descriptions and names on all of AJ's English cards and if a move was to be done in this game, it would have to be written.

Even with all his worries Atem still kept his promise to AJ about teaching him how to read. Every day, after AJ finished his homework, Atem would sit with him and work on some extra reading and writing. Atem found the boy to be very excited to learn and when he put his mind to a subject, he was not half bad. Atem could only guess what had caused the boy's language troubles was more the hectic circumstances of the last ten months then the boy's own intelligence.

AJ finished writing out his move and passed the paper over to Atem. He read it and then played exactly what the boy wrote out, the entire time AJ watching with his breath held.

"You tribute Giant Rat to summon Maximum Six, though, your order was wrong when writing out your attack. It looks like you want to attack yourself." Atem explained. AJ slapped his forehead with a groan, he was about to lose again. "But I am surprised to see you got the names of the cards right this time. For that, I will say you did not attack and simply ended your turn." Atem smiled.

"Yes!" AJ grinned back. Atem was about to start writing out his own move when the front door swung open.

"Hey boys, how are you doing?" Yugi asked as he came in from his run.

"Not so good Dad. Uncle Atem doesn't even need to attack me, I'm kicking my own butt." AJ sighed.

"You're doing just fine AJ. You're getting better with every round." Atem quickly added.

"Well then, I won't keep you guys from your heart-pounding game. I just need to know if anyone's eating with us tonight." Yugi asked.

"Um… the Ishtars said they would like to cook tonight so they're out getting ingredients. I think Mr. Bakura said he would try to come, but we did just take a test today so he might be stuck with that. Téa's a no, and I haven't heard from Joey." AJ listed. Yugi's face fell a bit at Joey's mention.

"We haven't heard from Joey in a while, have we? Not since the beginning of the week at least." Yugi said. AJ and Atem shrugged.

"He's probably off in the city somewhere. This is his vacation." Atem guessed. "We haven't heard anything to suggest he won't be with us when we volunteer." Yugi didn't say anything more and simply went upstairs to shower. Before he got all the way up the stairs he suddenly turned around and yelled.

"Any of Sector Security coming to dinner? Maybe KaibaCorp since you wanted their private books so bad?" Yugi jokingly yelled.

"No. First off, I didn't even know that 'Legends from South America' was KaibaCorp private property and two, I don't think security wants to jump the fence again! I am fairly sure one of them could see Duel Spirits and he was not happy to jump right by Gandora!" Atem yelled back. The two laughed as they remembered the man's face as he fell by the sleeping dragon of destruction.

The Muto's had searched for a large yard in Domino city for one specific reason. Any smaller yard could not hold the sleeping duel monster spirit of Gandora the Dragon of Destruction. Before, she would have had to do some fancy yoga just to get into a restful position thanks to the cramped streets of America. For the most part duel spirits cannot interact with the human world, they can only barely touch and be touched by humans that can see them. That's why it was very rare for a gigantic duel spirit like Gandora to want to live in the human dimension long term. However, after Yugi started using her as his main trump card, this dragon found it much more comfortable to sleep next to her master, despite the yoga. When Yugi was pulled into the afterlife Gandora left and only yesterday reappeared, sleeping soundly in the front lawn like she owned it.

"It was good for him that Gandora doesn't like to do anything else but sleep. Now if only more of the paparazzi could see duel spirits." Yugi finished. Atem chuckled to himself but soon found AJ looking at him funny. AJ could never see duel monster spirits, neither could his mother, but he trusted his father when he said they existed. It was something else in this conversation that piqued the boy's interest.

"You sound exactly like my Dad," AJ said. "Like, exactly the same."

"Really?"

"Yeah, watch! Dad say, um, it's time to duel!" AJ yelled upstairs as he pulled out his phone. Yugi with a bit of confusion did as asked and then AJ had Atem do the same. All while recording their voices on his phone. Sure enough, when played side by side, Yugi's and Atem's voice could almost not be distinguished.

"Huh, that is odd," Atem said, keeping the fact to himself that Yugi was supposed to be a modern version of himself. It still unnerved him when he saw how similar Yugi became. Was he what Atem would have looked like if he had grown to adulthood?

"You know what else? Here, wait a moment." AJ said as he got up and turned on the TV that was in front of the couch. He flipped through the channels until he found his favorite dueling network.

"As I remembered, they're doing top ten best duels of all time. Dad has to be on here at some point." AJ said. Right on cue the duel at Battle City between Seto and Yugi began. But what AJ saw as his father dueling was actually Atem in control of the young Yugi's body. Just as before, AJ recorded the TV's voice and compared it to Atem's voice now. "Exactly the same," AJ said, making sure to look back and see Atem's agreement. "And if you think that's weird just wait a bit!" AJ excitedly pointed at the screen. Atem saw a slight change in Yugi's appearances as the boy gained control of his body again. When Yugi spoke, it was at a much higher, clearly different pitch.

"When I first saw this, I thought it had something to do with the camera's microphone, but then I noticed that almost every recording of my Dad when he was a kid was like this. Weird huh? Wonder what caused the change." AJ grinned, having obviously impressed his new uncle with his observation skills. Atem nodded and turned back to the duel.

"That is odd, but if you are trying to distract me in hopes that I will not defeat next round, it is not going to work," Atem said as he gave a sly smile. AJ quickly jumped back onto the couch without even turning off the TV.

As the two battled Atem could not help but look at the voice recordings. The kid was getting close to the truth. It would only be a matter of time. Earlier this week Atem had actually asked Yugi about this very thing.

"I know, I know. We have to tell him eventually." Yugi had sighed back then as the two were doing the dishes. "But the thing with AJ is… Did he ever tell you about how he figured out that the Tooth Fairy wasn't real? He made a hypothesis and tested said hypothesis. He lost a tooth and didn't tell us for two nights as he hid it under his pillow. No money. He then told us he lost the tooth and the next night, money. He recorded his findings and confronted us. He was very proud to have figured it out. Do you know who was the next to find out the Tooth Fairy wasn't real? His whole class including the neighbors. Don't even get me started on what happened when he found out where babies came from." Atem couldn't help but chuckle at that thought and at the time Yugi joined in laughing too.

"What I'm trying to say is… he never means harm but, AJ loves learning and he loves helping people. He sees sharing his knowledge as one of the best ways to help, no matter how confidential the information is. If he found out I shared a body with a spirit? With you? It won't be long until people that shouldn't know that little piece of personal history is made aware." Yugi said.

"He is going to figure it out. Not all of it, but enough to raise some eyebrows." Atem said.

Yugi sighed and nodded. "We were going to wait until his eleventh birthday to tell him, but with you here we might need to speed up that schedule… Ok, just give us a bit of time and we'll tell him. If he puts the pieces together before, your free to explain whatever he asks."

Atem watched AJ as he wrote out his next move. He did not believe he would be the best person to explain why Yugi and his voice was so similar, not right now at least. He kept his mouth shut as AJ focused. Before AJ could hand his writing over to Atem a loud announcer from the TV made them both jump.

"WELCOME EVERYONE TO KAIBACORP'S NEWEST SHOWCASE!" The man yelled as a large stadium crowd cheered.

"Oh, I forgot this was today!" AJ whooped. He nearly vaulted the couch just to get back to the TV.

"What is KaibaCorp doing now?" Atem asked.

"They're showing off some new product. Something to 'change the way the game is played.' Seto is even going to present it along with the current American Duel Monsters Champion!" AJ nearly squeaked. Atem put down his cards and sat next to AJ in front of the TV.

* * *

Seto could hear the cheering of the crowd outside. It would only be a few more moments until he went out onto the track. Kaiba had never been the nervous type, this would be like any other showcase. However, this would be the first time in eighteen years that Kaiba demonstrated a product himself. He once again went through the rules in his head.

No normal spells

Spell usage is now based on speed tokens which one is gained each turn after the first turn if… if there are no special conditions in play.

And traps are now…now…

He growled and looked down at his cheat sheet. Honestly, a lot of the rules and card still needed tweaking and would be different in a few months. Not even this showcase would have "official" monsters and spells yet. Why was he even trying to study? Seto knew however, that wasn't why he was angry. When he was younger, he had the best memory of anyone, beating even adults. It was this memorization that allowed him to beat his stepfather in that first all-important chest game. However now, his brain became so... fuzzy at times.

When Seto first got his "punishment" for traveling to the afterlife he thought that the Higher Ups were crazy. How could his body being kept in the prime of his life be a punishment? He didn't even have to worry about living forever. They had promised that if he didn't die by some outside force, he would die of old age later in life. How was this supposed to be a penalty? Then the side effects reared their heads. His body was kept in the almost exact condition that it was when he landed in the afterlife. While Seto hated to admit it, at the time he had not taken care of his body. Getting a rematch with the pharaoh had been an obsession. It took precedence over hygiene, sleeping, even eating at the time. The adrenal had been his savior back then, he hadn't even felt it when he had twisted his leg landing in the afterlife. Of all the things kept the same in his body, adrenalin was now gone. Seto, for the last eighteen years, had felt nothing but his bad health every second of every day. It never wavered, never got any worse or better. The first decade Seto had gotten used to it. Nothing he couldn't will through. Now though, the dull static was becoming distracting, _maddening_.

"Mr. Kaiba are you ready?" Kaiba looked up to see his new hire. A tall woman with purple hair named Risa Kageyama. She did her job just fine. She was a very good business advisor and occasional master of ceremonies. She made very little mistakes in her work and kept the Kaibas more on task than any other adviser had.

But she wasn't Roland.

Seto shook that thought out of his head. Roland was just another employee, nothing more. Sure, he had been one of the few adults brave enough to be kind to the Kaiba siblings during Gozaburo's abuse and to stay by the siblings' side during Dartz's take over. But where did that get him in the end? Just to live and die as a lackey.

It's your fault he's dead.

"Mr. Kaiba, please. It's time." She reiterated. Kaiba nodded to her then walked to his Duel Runner, a duel disk/motorcycle hybrid specifically made for this upcoming game. It was gleaming white, just like the rest of Seto's gear. To his left, the American Duel Monsters champion got onto her own Runner. Why were all the American champions so short? First Rebecca, now this kid. Her name was Tessa and she barely made it up to Seto's waist.

"Good luck out there," Tessa said. She adjusted her purple glasses, her hazel eyes underneath gleaming with fire. Kaiba simply nodded. He had no idea how good this woman was. She was the American national champion and she knew how to ride, that alone would create a lot of buzz for this duel. Add on Kaiba publicly dueling for the first time in years, and duelist everywhere would be foaming at the mouth to see who won. Seto still loved a duel, especially if it was someone as supposedly good as Tessa, but he couldn't help but wish he was dueling someone else.

Seto had tried to convince Yugi to come and defend his title, but the man had adamantly refused. Not because he was scared of losing his title, Yugi had become very confident over the years when it came to keeping his title (much to Seto's annoyance), he simply didn't want to duel. He wouldn't even hear of Seto trying to ask Atem to do it either. Seto was surprised how well Yugi had blocked the pharaoh from his advances. He supposed Yugi had learned all of KaibaCorp's "persuasions" at this point thanks to his many years of being the King of Games. Seto didn't even think Atem knew that people were trying to contact him this last week.

"Getting a little protective are we now, Yugi?" Seto said to himself.

"Did you say something-?" Tessa began but was cut off by the announcer.

"ARE WE READY FOLKS?!" The announcer continued. The crowd went wild, even the children in the Mutos' living room were glued to the screen. "OK THEN! LET'S COUNT DOWN! 5…4…3…2…" A green light followed by an alarm sounded through the stadium. At once Kaiba and Tessa shot out of the garage. The crowd continued to cheer as the two made a lap around the track, Tessa waving to the crowd. It was at this point that people noticed how different these bikes looked from normal motorcycles. They started to whisper and point. Kaiba had anticipated this and spoke into his microphone.

"Welcome duelist! For over twenty years we have grown and battled with the game known as Duel Monsters. It has shaped our world and taken us to heights never before achieved! Most would leave it at that and say we are at our peak. I laugh at such people!" Kaiba announced. Everyone chanted in response. Kaiba waited a few moments to build the tension. Then,

"Thanks to new advancements in technology and energy collection we have created the next best step in dueling!"

And absorbing the Truesdale Brothers company. Without their idea, none of this would be possible. The Truesdales had made this duel style many years ago but kept it underground for fear KaibaCorp would take it. It had become so popular underground in fact, that the duel runners needed to duel was banned on the Satellite because people were starting to use them for less government-approved deeds. None the less, KaibaCorp was now going to bring this into the spotlight

A part of Seto wondered if the remaining Truesdale would be watching, seeing he and his brother's passion project finally come to life. They had guarded this idea closely for so many years. It was only the death of the younger brother that had finally made the older loosens his grip on the rights to this new style of dueling.

It's your fault.

Seto growled, now was not the time for that intrusive thought. He had much more to deal with.

"Instead of simply explaining this new system, I find it best to show it!" Kaiba yelled as he and Tessa activated the field spell to revolutionize dueling, Speed World.

As it activated a great purple wave covered the area. Everyone gasped as the two Duel Runners were enveloped but continued to race forward at normal speed.

"Autopilot activated." Both Duel Runners declared. The two Duel Runners sped up and slowed down respectively so that they ran at the same speed. It was time to battle, no time to be distracted by dull pain and past events.

"I'll go first since Kaiba has taken the mic so far!" Tessa declared. "And I'll play Summoner Monk! Its ability allows me to play it in face-up defense mode." She announced. On both runners were duel disk style card activators and a cardholder. Tessa didn't quite know why there be a cardholder since both Duel Runners would always be in autopilot. Why would she need a free hand to steer? Oh well. She slapped the card down on the card activator. As normal, her mage appeared right next to her, but unlike normal duels this card stayed floating alongside the Duel Runner as it raced along the track.

"Its other ability allows me to Special Summon 1 Level 4 monster from my Deck as long as I send a spell card to the graveyard. And I choose Genex Blastfan!" The crowd roared its approval as she sent her spell to the graveyard and a gear-like monster appeared on the field. "I'll place one card face down and end my turn. You're up!"

* * *

"Oooh, she's a very famous mage swarmer you know. Looks like she's starting up her wall! And what's more, they're on motorcycles! That immediately makes the duel ten times cooler! It doesn't take someone who has watched all sixteen hours of 'Duel Monsters: A History' to know how revolutionary this duel's gonna be!" AJ cheered as he shook Atem back and forth with excitement. Atem gently pushed his nephew away as he watched Kaiba play his next turn.

"You actually finished that documentary? I couldn't even get through one hour of it and most of it was my life." Yugi yawned. The two in front of the TV looked up the stairs to see Yugi come down with Chell in his arms.

"That's why I loved it so much! I got to find out more about my dad from an outside perspective." AJ smiled. Atem's and the boy's attention was immediately taken back to the screen when Kaiba played a spell. It was one neither had ever seen before.

"I now play Speed Spell - Count Up! For every card I send to the graveyard, I get three-speed counters!" Kaiba declared. Three cards were sent to the graveyard. It was then that the group noticed that Kaiba was going faster than Tessa for every speed counter.

"Why do that? Won't that just make it harder for Seto to focus on dueling?" Yugi asked.

"They are on autopilot so I doubt it is that. Maybe he's going to use the counters to attack?" Atem guessed. Kaiba did not use the counters and instead simply attacked Summoner Monk. His Wyvern reared back it's neck and shot a blast at Tessa. It took her a moment to register what was going on since Kaiba was so much farther ahead, but she was prepared for this attack.

"I activate-!" Before Tessa even had a chance of pushing the button to activate her trap, the attack hit her. She saw as her life points decreased. "Wait! I had a trap to counter that!" She yelled.

"Too late! In a Turbo Duel, you're not just riding the bikes, you must dodge attacks if you want a chance at activating any countermeasures. That's why it might be best to be far ahead of your opponent. Or right beside." Kaiba darkly sneered. Tessa only had no speed counters while he was at 9. He was starting to swing around the stadium and come up behind her. "That is not all Speed Counters are good for. I now activate Speed Spell – Double Banking. By losing six of my speed counters I can have one monster attack again. Go Assault Wyvern!" This time though, Tessa was ready with her trap card. The Mutos watched as the duel went back and forth without one person truly getting the upper hand for many turns. The entire time their Duel Runners weaved and bobbed, creating quite a spectacle to watch, even if you weren't focused on the duel.

"This is just the coolest! When he releases these Duel Runners can I get one Dad? Pleeeease!" AJ begged. Yugi sat behind the two on the couch with Chell sucking on a bottle in his arms.

"No, I think you need a license before even thinking of getting something like that," Yugi said.

"Daaaaad, Come on! Mr. Bakura and Marik have them." AJ begged. Yugi shook his head.

"It's still not safe for someone your size," Yugi said.

"Probably doesn't help your argument that almost all the bikers your father knew as a kid were… jerks." Atem added. Making sure to replace evil with a more kid-friendly synonym.

"Something about motorcycle riding jerks?" Everyone turned to the door as the Ishtar's came in with a tired-looking Bakura beside them.

"Ignore what Atem said, we were just trying to deter this ten-year-old from dueling on a motorcycle." Yugi smiled. Marik's eyes snapped to the TV. They lit up as he nearly pushed Atem aside so he could sit in front.

"You guys are watching this too? I was glued to it back in the shopping plaza as they played it on the big screen. But we had to be 'polite guests' and 'get back at a reasonable hour' so I thought I'd miss the ending!"

As AJ and Marik excitedly pointed out moves and generally fanboyed, Bakura collapsed on the couch. The other Ishtars moved to the kitchen with their ingredients in hand.

"Long day?" Yugi asked. Bakura nodded but smiled as Chell reached out for him. She loved his long white hair and soon found ways to cover herself in it.

"First big test of the year, always fun to grade. I will say, AJ is doing a lot better now. He only asked me to read a few of the instructions." Bakura said. Yugi smiled as he looked down at the card duel still on the table in front of him.

"Those two sure are working hard," Yugi whispered. Atem came back to the couch after being rudely dethroned from the front spot. He sat next to Yugi but away from Chell, for everyone's sake. A sudden crash and cheering from the two up front made everyone jump.

"Kaiba might lose!" Marik yelled. This immediately got Yugi's and Atem's attention. It was true. Tessa still had 1,700 life points and two mages with 2500 attack points on her side of the field. Seto only had 500 life points, 10-speed tokens, and 1 new monster that Yugi had never seen before. It wasn't particularly strong, it only had 1300 attack and defense points. But it did have something that piqued Yugi's interest, it was something called a tuner monster.

"I now lose all 10 of my speed tokens to activate Speed Spell - Monster Reborn! My Blue Eyes, return to me!" Kaiba fell behind Tessa as his faithful monster reappeared on the battle track in a flash of white light.

"Wanting to go out using your best monster, huh Kaiba? You can only knock out one of my monsters this turn and next turn I'll use the other one's abilities to attack you directly. leaving you with zero life points." Tessa taunted. Honestly, she wasn't the type to taunt, but in all her years of dueling, she found that doing this really revved up a crowd. KaibaCorp was paying her for two things, to sell their product and get the crowd going. What can you do? Before the two duelists could make another lap, the duel would be over. Then, she could do what she truly came here to achieve.

"That's not all!" Kaiba stated. He pointed to his two monsters. "I will now synchro summon using my two monsters!" The crowd went wild, so loud in fact that the Mutos couldn't hear the name of the monster Kaiba just summoned.

"Synchro summons?" Yugi asked. "He's not using polymerization. Is he combining the two monsters?"

"Yeah! It's this new way of summoning! You use those tuner monsters with other monsters to summon big boys! No spell card required!" AJ cheered with Marik. Yugi looked to Bakura and Atem. They both shrugged. They couldn't decipher what AJ said either.

"Go! Azure-Eyes Silver Dragon!" In the place of the two monsters, a great chrome dragon appeared on the field. It only had 2500 attack point, the same number of attack points both of Tessa's two mages had.

"Why would he do that? Now he won't do any damage if he attacks." AJ asked. Both Atem and Yugi stayed quiet. They knew Seto wouldn't summon this new monster without a reason.

"Now its ability, once per turn it can summon one normal monster from my graveyard in attack position." Everyone, even Tessa gasped, as Blue Eyes returned to the field. "Now I activate my trap card, Metalmorph and give it to my Azure-Eyes Silver Dragon to raise her attack points." While it took AJ a while to count up the points in his head, all the other veteran duelist knew what this meant immediately. With no trap cards on her field and no spell cards in her hand. The damage she would take from both dragons' attacks would bring her life points to zero. No amount of dodging could stop this. The attacks went off and both her mages exploded in a ball of blue light. As her points went to zero her Duel Runners came to a stop and started smoking, signaling the end.

"Wow." was all Atem could say as the match finished. He looked around at the group. Marik and AJ were practically drooling at the TV screen. Even those on the couch were interested, all but Yugi. His face was a familiar mask, but what he was hiding Atem was not quite sure on.

"Are you ok Yugi-?"

"DID YOU SEE HOW AWESOME THAT WAS!"

"I KNOW! THAT WAS LIKE THE COOLEST IDEA EVER!"

"I HAVE TO DUEL LIKE THAT!" Both AJ and Marik yelled, causing everyone to fall back and plug their ears. Even lazy Gandora outside opened up one eye, just to make sure whoever was screaming murder was not coming for her.

"I love the enthusiasm, but is it possible to turn down the volume?" Bakura groaned. Both AJ and Marik gave embarrassed chuckles and did speak in lower tones, but they still fanboyed at sonic speeds to each other. With their infectious joy, Bakura couldn't help but join in. The other Ishtars came in from the kitchen and were pulled into the discussion too.

"What feelings are you hiding?" Atem flatly said. He didn't feel like trying to dance around the issue this time.

"…I can't hide anything ever again with you around, can I?" Yugi quietly chuckled.

"Just as I cannot." Atem smiled back. Yugi took in a deep breath and let it out with an annoyed sigh.

"I'm the King of Games. If that style of dueling gets popular, I'm going to have to learn how to do it. While it seems fun, I don't know where I'll find the time? Especially with us releasing our sequel game soon." Yugi moaned. Yugi then looked up to see Marik and AJ staring at him. "Err, no offense Marik. I'm not knocking your hobby." Yugi quickly added. A smile spread across Marik's face, it freaked out both Yugi and Atem.

"I get to teach you how to ride!" Marik cheered. "I've been offering for years and it's finally happening!"

"Yes! And I can learn too!" AJ joined in.

"Wait a minute. I don't even know if I want to learn!"

"Yes, you do. Especially if you want to keep your title. Or are you finally retiring?" Marik joked. The others laughed too. The King of Games title was Yugi's, it couldn't be anyone else's. As they laughed Atem looked back to Yugi to see the King of Games not joining in, but instead quietly thinking.

* * *

After the match, Seto immediately got off the track. There would be time later for interviews, now he had to get his body temperature right. Another fun side effect of keeping your body forever in one moment. If temperatures were even a little bit higher or lower then how it was in the afterlife, Seto felt it. Everything was either burning, freezing, or nothing. And it turned out that the afterlife was much colder than Japan. Thankfully, Seto had more than enough money to spend keeping the temperature exactly where he needed it. Even during the Turbo Duel, he was wearing an expensive climate-controlled tracksuit. But the wind flying by him still froze his face. In the garage he paced in circles, warming up his face by rubbing his hands across it. It was rare that Seto felt cold and he hated the sensation.

"That was a good duel. You have to admit I almost had you back there." Seto's head snapped up as he saw the dark sandy hair of Tessa come up to him. He looked down to actually see her face as she held out her hand to him. Kaiba ignored the hand but faced the women.

"Anything less and you would not have been worthy of the title of champion," Kaiba stated. Tessa let her hand fall. Looks like what she heard about Kaiba was true. This wouldn't be easy.

"Err, thanks?" Tessa said, hoping Kaiba would give her a little more to work with. Kaiba stayed silent. Tessa sighed and pulled out a piece of paper.

"Do you know of the People of the Stars, or the legends surrounding them?" Tessa asked deciding it was not worth the time to try to butter up the CEO. Kaiba continued to look down at her, his facial expression not changing. Though, his whole body was starting to slightly shiver. Not out of fear but, cold? Sure, it was a little chilly outside and the air conditioner was still running in the garage despite that, but nothing that'd make you do a full-body shiver this fast. The two just barely had time to change out of their tracksuits.

"No. I don't deal in myths and legends." He said bluntly.

"Then can you explain to me why a combination of KaibaCorp and Sector Security has been rounding up all information on them?" She then lifted up the paper she had been holding. It documented many transactions and deletions made by KaibaCorp or its false companies. All of it relating to the People of the Stars.

"Why would you care about a few lousy books?" Seto asked.

"I'm a Mythologist believe it or not. After the Zero Reverse-" At that name Tessa noticed a slight flinch in Kaiba's stone face. But it was gone before she could even blink. "… After the earthquake, I started studying them. Apparently, they might have predicted the event over five-thousand years ago! But now almost all the information on them is gone or kept in your vaults. I want answers! No one can look up this civilization without red tape being shoved their throat." Tessa barked. Seto did recognize the name, he had been asked by the director of Sector Security to help collect this information. Something Kaiba would have utterly ignored in the past.

"Then it sounds like you have a problem with Sector Security, not KaibaCorp. We just work with security to help clean up after the Zero Reverse. It's part of our community service." Kaiba stated and started to walk away. He needed to get warm.

"So, what? Are you really just letting KaibaCorp be used for whatever low business Sector Security likes? I thought the great Seto Kaiba wouldn't let his company be dirtied like that!" Tessa yelled but Kaiba didn't stop. He went up a set of stairs and disappeared from sight.

Oh well, it was worth a try. Tessa thought.

* * *

Tessa's last words rang through Seto's ears. Sector Security had been slowly growing in power ever since the Zero Reverse. It was the first responder to the disaster and was the first to start putting the city back together. Pretty soon it would be as powerful as the New Domino city government, as powerful as KaibaCorp once was. If Seto had a choice he would keep his beloved company out of all this Sector Security nonsense, but he lost that choice the moment his reactor exploded.

The public had been told that a natural disaster caused the damage, taking away most of the blame from KaibaCorp. The Sector Security director, however, knew what really happened. There was no earthquake, and he reminded Seto of that fact often. Goodwin had been a scientist in the Ener-D tower's very lab. He and many others had tried to warn Kaiba about the dangers. Seto didn't listen, his brain had been too fuzzy at the time to really understand what they were saying. Because of one decision eighteen years ago, a city full of people died.

Seto collapsed against a wall and slid to the floor. He was getting too cold. His whole body began to violently shiver to the point he couldn't control his movements. Mokuba would be by soon, he hated it when his younger brother had to find him like this.

It's your fault It's your fault It's your fault It's your fault It's your fault


	18. Familiar Faces

"Sometimes I just want to knock those goody-two-shoes right off my husband." Rebecca groaned. She was speaking to Téa on the phone Saturday morning. Her family, the Ishtars, and Bakura was downstairs entertaining Chell as they all waited for the agreed time to volunteer. "As soon as he comes back what does he want to do? Go on a vacation to spend time with his family that he hasn't seen in months? No. Stay in town and rest from his near-death experience? No. He wants to spend time volunteering! Why did you guys have to tell him you were in town for that?" Rebecca jokingly sighed. Téa giggled at Rebecca's exaggerated annoyance over the video chat.

"I'm sure he means well. He probably just wants to actively do something to help fix this city while hanging out with friends. You would know that. Heck, you probably know Yugi better than anyone, well, next to Atem. I swear those two still share a mind sometime." Téa said. Rebecca walked to the banister of the stairs to look down into the family room. Chell was sitting on Yugi's lap and laughing like she was witnessing the most hilarious act in her entire life. What she was watching was AJ jumping over a pillow in the middle of the room over and over again. This simple act was making Chell go crazy and in turn, making everyone else in the room smile. Rebecca turned her gaze to Atem who was watching from his dark corner, not as far as he used to have to stand.

"He's been good to have around. AJ's really taken a liking to him, and he and Yugi keep each other honest. It's kind of funny, the minute one tries to hide something the other immediately calls him out, no matter how small it is. But if they start finishing each other's sentences, I swear..." Rebecca laughed.

"How is Atem adjusting to modern life? I would have liked to hang around you guys for more than one dinner, but even on vacation I still have work to do." Téa sighed.

"He's been fine. I think he's adjusting to modern life well. He's even finally starting to use contractions in his sentences again. Though, he is now terrified by- sorry not terrified. Pharaohs can't have emotions like fear apparently. Worried by, the kitchen 3D printer." Rebecca laughed. She remembered back to when she and Yugi had come home to find Atem fighting off a mound of bread spewing out of the kitchen 3D printer with a butter knife.

"That sounds hilarious and I have to get the story later, but that's not quite what I meant Bec. I mean how is he doing? This all must be a big change for him." Téa asked again. Rebecca sighed. She hadn't had the chance to really talk to the teen. He was either out in the city, teaching AJ, or eating with the whole family. No time for one on one.

"I think he's doing good. He seems to really enjoy being with Yugi and everyone again. He is rather quiet, but from what I heard from Yugi that is how he usually is. That weird aura he has hasn't gone away, but the family is getting used to it."

"Are you not quite used to it?" Téa asked. Rebecca gazed down to Atem again. He looked up to her and gave a friendly smile but soon moved away from the stairs. The two were never cold to each other, but Rebecca could tell it would be hard for them to become friends.

The last time she had met Atem was when she was a very immature 14-year-old. Rebecca still cringed at that time. AJ now was more mature then she had been back then. Atem had lost Yugi's soul and young Rebeca did not take that well. She released all her sorrow and rage at the poor pharaoh then, even though he was probably hurting just as much as she was. It wasn't just her sadness over Yugi she had unleashed on the spirit. All her negative feelings she had pent up over the years regarding her parents' death, people looking down on her for her age, frustration with bullies from college, all was put upon the spirit. Good thing she never activated the Seal of Orichalcos or she would have been a true monster.

The pharaoh had taken all her abuse without lashing back and Rebecca had to give him props for that, but there was still some left-over resentment and sadness, from Rebecca and Atem both. It would be a steep climb for the two to ever truly be comfortable with each other. Add on that Ra forsaken aura. Yugi and everyone seemed over it, but every time she found herself looking at the spirit all her alarm bells still went off.

"I don't know. Maybe it's because he's similar, yet so different to Yugi. It might be some uncanny valley effect I'm feeling." Rebecca said. Téa nodded. She had dealt with similar feelings too when she was growing up, though in a different way.

"We are still going to meet you at the construction site, right?" Rebecca asked wanting to change the subject.

"Sadly no. Apparently cleaning up debris to make way for a bridge is too lowly of work for someone of my fame. My agent had a fit about me even volunteering at all in this 'dangerous city.' I managed to talk him into letting me volunteer at an orphanage on Satellite island. I'll meet you guys for dinner tonight but that's about it."

"Aw, we'll miss you. Stay safe on that island, I hear Sector Security moved all the criminals to that place. There are even some crazies over here that actually believe that the Zero Reverse made the Satellite to 'separate the good from the bad.' It's a good thing we're helping to build a bridge to connect the two landmasses." Rebecca said. "Maybe this time they won't stop the construction mid-build as they've done for other bridges planned to connect the two" Just then Yugi came up the stairs with Atem behind him.

"You ready to go Bec?" He asked. "I already called the cab. I hope you don't mind but I called a driverless cab. I know it's a bit more expensive but I don't want to take the chance on a human cab driver again." Rebecca smiled back at him to give her approval and the two boys continued up the stairs.

"Ok, we got to go," Rebecca said.

"Wait! I just remembered the whole reason I called you. How is Yugi doing?"

"Huh? Fine, he's as healthy as ever, it's actually kind of a miracle-"

"Not quite again. I mean…. He came back to find most of his family and friends gone."

"…" Rebecca looked up the stairs to see Yugi tying his and Atem's hair down in bandanas like Solomon used to do. Atem's hair was adamantly fighting with Yugi, the two smiled and laughed the whole time.

"…We went to the city memorial for the victims a few days ago. Sadly, the closest thing anyone has for graves here after the Zero Reverse. He paid his respects, brought flowers, shed a few tears but… it was nothing like when he lost people before. And it was not just his 'oh, I don't wanna worry you' hidden pain." Rebecca whispered. Both women stayed quiet for a few seconds. There were many different ways to mourn and they understood that. However, when Yugi mourned in the past whether it was his Grandpa or Atem, he mourned...differently than this.

"I just don't want him hiding his pain for Atem's sake. That's never healthy, especially for someone like Yugi." Téa said. Rebecca nodded. She looked back to Téa on the video call and tried to give her a smile.

"Trust me, if Yugi was trying to hide any pain Atem or I would find out immediately. He's doing amazing." Téa smiled back and they ended the call. What both women were hiding behind that conversation were the real questions they had, what almost all their friends had wondered at one point or another. All Yugi and Atem had said about their meeting during the ten months were that they found each other while saving the world. They never said where they were. With Yugi acting like this around death and the twos' continual silence whenever the afterlife was brought up, it didn't take long for all to wonder. Did Yugi survive the Zero Reverse?

* * *

"Why do I have to wear this?" Atem asked as Yugi finally got the bandana to cover his hair.

"Trust me. If people saw our tricolored hair together, we wouldn't be able to get any work done. Remember how hard it was to get around with fans when I was younger? Now imagine my gaming fame in a world where the card game means everything. I'm just surprised you haven't been swarmed yet." Yugi said.

"I admit, I'm a little surprised too since you talk often about the trouble they can be. Most people when they see me just call me a 'Yugi fanboy' or something along those lines." Atem said.

"Ah, you're just a little too new for public knowledge. Enjoy that while you can." Yugi smiled. After tying down his own hair and putting on some sunglasses, he looked out the heavy curtains of the upstairs window. He then alerted everyone in the house that the cab was here. The only ones staying home was Chell and Ishizu. Ishizu had graciously offered to watch the baby while she worked on the computer. Everyone else piled into the driverless cab outside. This vehicle had more room to comfortably fit 8 people than the Mutos' cars. While the cab looked like a van on the outside, it was more of a pod on the inside. Made so everyone could face each other.

"Weren't we going to pick up Joey?" Rebecca asked as she saw Yugi type in the address for the volunteer location instead of Joey's house.

"I tried calling him but he wouldn't pick up. Eventually, he texted me and told me he was sleeping in today. He's going to meet us at the place later." Yugi said. Both Rebecca and Yugi had worry on their faces. Atem wanted to ask what was wrong but he soon found himself being poked by AJ.

"So, is it true that we have a dragon in our front yard?" AJ whispered to Atem as he pointed outside the car. Atem looked out and saw a giant dragon taking up half the yard as she stretched out in the sun, but he knew AJ saw nothing there.

"Hmhm, she's Yugi's spirit partner. Spirit partners are normal duel spirits that chose to live in this human dimension with their cardholders. Great duelist that truly love their cards will sometimes have them, even if they can't see them. Kaiba's a great example of that with his Blue-Eyes. But that doesn't mean you're a bad duelist if you don't have a spirit partner or can't see duel spirits. Spirits are fickle things and the gift to see them is even more confusing." Atem said. AJ stranded his eyes to try and see any sign of a spirit but he just ended up giving himself a headache.

"I've gotten that talk from Dad before. I know how they work. I just wish I could see them. I just want to pat a dragon, is that so much to ask?" AJ sighed. Atem smiled and was about to turn his attention to whatever the adults were talking about when AJ spoke again.

"Do you have a spirit partner?" he asked.

"Uh, yes actually. The Dark Magician."

"What? You serious?! That's so awesome if you're not joking. Is he here with us right now?" AJ asked as he bounced up and down in his seat.

"No, I actually haven't seen him for a while," Atem said.

"Oh," AJ said, clearly disappointed. He then turned and started chatting with his mother.

Atem pulled out his deck and looked down at the Dark Magician card. It was still in fairly good condition, a few bends and rough edges but nothing to suggested that it was the card that had saved Atem on so many adventures. It still made Atem feel homesick to look at. Back when he shared a body with Yugi, he occasionally had felt the same feelings when he gazed at the card. Now he understood why, it was the representation of one of his dearest friends from Egypt.

His friends in Egypt… how were they doing? Atem had tried many times in the last week to summon the Spirit of Mahad through this card, just to find out how everyone was doing, but he never came. Atem at least had the reassurance that there would be no chaos in his part of the afterlife because of a missing leader. The Higher Ups had given permission for Atem to leave his post when they still thought Yugi was dead, meaning that they were prepared to put Priest Seto on the throne. However, Atem still worried for his friends in the afterlife. He had made his decision to protect Yugi so quickly that he didn't have time to truly think about the consequences of leaving them, maybe to never return. Could they ever forgive him for such a rash decision? Did he need forgiving? All right when they too were having their own problems with the Earthbound Immortals.

The Earthbound Immortals, just thinking about them made Atem grimace. This race for any information on them was quickly becoming a wild Springoose chase. All information Atem had on them was scraps that he had to fight and nearly get arrested for. He knew that these Immortals were a world-destroying force similar to Zorc that was locked away. Atem guessed they were locked away in the Nazca lines thanks to their little shadow creatures looking exactly like the outlines. All this was done by an ancient South American civilization called the People of the Stars. This was something Atem was sure on, but after that things got fuzzy.

The People of the Stars apparently had some sort of star, dragon, god, thing, along with six powerful duel monster dragons. These duel monsters needed six chosen people called Signers to wield them. They all came together to create a power that locked away the Immortals. To add on to the confusion, it looked like another completely separate group of Signers had called upon the dragon god five-thousand years before the People of the Stars to lock away a different evil force. Does that mean the Signers are reborn every five thousand years? If so, where were they now? Did Atem have to somehow contact them? How would he even begin to do that, put up an ad on the internet?!

Atem shook his head, this was getting ridiculous. He needed more information. He then remembered the paradise leader that had helped him back in the afterlife, the one that led the group to reenact the ceremonial battle. He must have known all this. In Slifer's name, that leader had even turned into a dragon similar to the beast used to represent the dragon god in ancient carvings. If only Atem could somehow contact the afterlife. He looked down once again at the Dark Magician card, no duel spirit came forth.

I miss you guys, Atem thought.

"Hey, guys we're here."

* * *

It was hard work but Atem found himself enjoying it. While most still thought Yugi crazy for wanting this, working with all his friends was becoming a good time. It wasn't like simply talking over dinner. Working hard got different sides of his friends to come out, even Yugi was showing emotions Atem didn't even know Yugi had.

"Hey Atem, could you come over here?" Yugi called. Both Atem and AJ stepped towards Yugi. "The original Atem." Both boys took another step forward.

"You did know me first Dad." AJ smiled.

"Ah, I suppose. How about the red-eyed Atem please come with me?" Once again both boys stepped forward

"My eyes can be red in the right light. Besides, Uncle has more magenta eyes. Though, I suppose in this light it looks red too." AJ said.

"AJ…You know I only call you by your real name when I'm angry. Do I look angry?"

"Kind of." Atem had to look away and hide his own laughter as Yugi was doing the quintessential done with this dad face. "Hey, don't blame me for the fact that some stupid pharaoh had to have a catchy name. If you have a problem with it, take it up with him!" This made Atem lose it and even Yugi had to snicker.

"Hey kiddo, don't go knockin' a name like dat! You don't know how hard some people might have had to work to get dat name! Some might have almost died for it!" The group looked to their left to see Joey come hobbling up to the construction site. His hair was a complete mess and his clothes were dirty and ripped. Despite all this, the blonde man was grinning wide.

"Uncle Joey!" AJ yelled as he ran up to Joey and threw himself into a hug.

"Nyeh, not so loud, ok kiddo? Uncle Joey's not havin' the best mornin'." Joey groaned AJ jumped down and smiled up at Joey.

"Ok sorry. But now you have me here so that instantly makes your morning better, right?" AJ said.

"It sure does! So how is everyone fairin'? Is Yugi runnin' dem ragged?"

"Hardly, I'm not the one in charge of this little cleanup operation. Those two over there would be the ones 'runnin' dem ragged'" Yugi said as he pointed to the lead volunteer with blonde hair called Alexis and her friend with blue hair called Jesse.

"Ah, hope dey don't mind me comin' late. My bed was just too comfortable dis mornin'." Joey said as the group started to walk back towards the workplace.

"I doubt it, we can use all the help we can get." Yugi smiled. The entire time AJ practically held onto Joey's side as Atem walked behind them.

"Speaking of, do you mind if I talk to you for a bit Yuge?" Joey said, briefly glancing to the smiling AJ.

"Of course. Hey AJ, I've thought up another riddle of you to solve." Yugi said as he bent down to face AJ

"Ok Dad, I'm ready." Yugi had to think for a bit. He needed a riddle that would stump AJ for a while but nothing new was coming to mind.

"What is something you can show, but can't see?" Yugi finally said. AJ face fell into deep concentration. He continued to walk back to the construction site without the others following him. He even started to mutter to himself.

"What is he doing?" Atem asked as he saw AJ find a small alcove made by some building materials and wedge himself inside.

"Whenever AJ needs to think, he finds himself the smallest hole he can fit into. We really don't know why he does it, but he does do his best thinking in that position." Yugi said. "Do you mind going over there and making sure he doesn't hurt himself?" Atem knew what Yugi was doing. He was distracting him so he could talk to Joey. Nonetheless, Atem nodded and walked over to the muttering AJ.

"That riddle has many answers. Trust me." Atem said as he sat next to the boy. AJ didn't seem to notice him.

As AJ continued to think, Atem couldn't help but glance up to Joey and Yugi. Their conversation did not look to be about the most lighthearted of topics. Atem soon found himself straining his ear to try and hear the discussion. He was Joey's friend too, best friend at one time.

Atem looked at the volunteers around him. None even noticed the new arrival. Atem then picked up a piece of paper that was on the ground and pretended to study it. The wind was blowing slightly, just enough to "take" the paper from Atem. The wind blew it behind a pile of materials that Joey and Yugi were around. Atem being the non-litter he was, raced after the paper. He quietly picked it up and crouched as close as he could get to the conversation on the other side of the pile.

"I'm fine Yuge, serious," Joey grumbled.

"You don't look fine. It looks like you got in a fight with a Kuriboh and lost."

"Well, it wasn't exactly a group of fluff balls dat I got in a fight with at the bar last night. I think I look pretty good for what I fought off."

"You were brawling again? I thought you stopped that when you were a teenager."

"Don't give me dat tone of voice Yugi. I'm not some street punk. I just needed to blow off some steam dat's all." Joey warned. "But that's not my point! I believe I was asking YOU how YOU were doin'." Joey emphasized.

"I'm doing great. Adjusting been a little strange with Atem here now but other than that-"

"Skip the crap, I mean how are you honestly feelin'?!" Joey croaked as he put both hands on Yugi's shoulders.

"I'm feeling just fine. I am a little worried but that's because of you Joey!"

"You don't need to hide anythin', I'm your best friend. How are you just standin' here all normal after findin' out only a short while ago dat so many of your friends and family are dead?! You lost just as many loved ones in the Zero Reverse as I did!" Both Yugi and Atem immediately felt sick to their stomachs. Mai, Serenity, probably even his parents. They all were now on their journeys in the afterlife. All of Joey's remaining family.

"…Joey? Do you need to sit down?" Yugi quietly asked. Joey, realizing what he just said slowly took his hands away from Yugi.

"No," Joey said in a low voice. Immediately after, the famous Joey smile covered the man's face. "Sorry for that outburst Yuge, I went way out of line. Entirely dis knucklehead's fault." Joey laughed as he tapped his own head. "I've been partyin' it up way too much dese last few weeks. Dat championship win in Rio has really gone to my head."

"Joey…"

"Now isn't it tradition or somethin' for a volunteer site to have bottled water on hand? I could really use it to wake up." Joey preceded to walk past Yugi and towards the work site. Yugi chased after him, only briefly looking back to find Atem hiding. There was no surprise on Yugi's face, just sadness.

"I'll talk to him." Yugi wordlessly mouthed. Atem nodded as the two disappeared into the crowd of volunteers. Slowly, Atem got to his feet. Was there anything he could do? Unconsciously, Atem reached up to his chest, grabbing for something that wasn't there. He quickly remembered that he didn't have the Millennium Puzzle anymore and dropped his hand. He really was useless in these kinds of situations, no matter what Marik had said.

"Kurriii!" Atem turned around in surprise as a flying brown puffball bowled into Atem. It was a Winged Kuriboh and he was very adamant about pushing Atem somewhere.

"Hey, what is wrong?" Atem asked but the duel spirit continued to push him to the outskirts of the construction site. Atem had to admit that this Winged Kuriboh felt familiar, but he and Yugi never owned a card like this. Wait… there was once a time-traveling boy that the two fought that had this card. It was one of the toughest none shadow game duels the two Mutos ever faced. "Are you Jaden's spirit partner-?!" The Winged Kuriboh gave one final push and Atem found himself sliding down a steep hill. He was thankfully able to stop himself from landing on his head at the bottom. He then found himself crouched behind a row of building materials with three people in their twenties ahead.

"What in Obelisk's name Chazz!?" Alexis, the lead volunteer yelled. She was holding back a tall pale boy from attacking another volunteer on the ground.

"He tore it in half! Ripped it just because he lost a duel with it!" The boy named Chazz screamed. The volunteer on the ground got to his feet, rubbing a bruise that was slowly growing on his face.

"Why do you care?! It was my card!" The man yelled. This just seemed to make Chazz madder. Atem then noticed three small duel spirits floating around the remains of a monster card on the ground.

"Aw boss, let's just hope that this monster was able to get back to our home dimension before he was ripped." The yellow monster said.

"There's no need to waste your energy fighting this jerk." The black one added, as he too tried to hold Chazz back.

"Ya boss, you hafta think positively!" The green monster said, however, none of them looked hopeful for the monster's fate. Chazz growled but stopped fighting Alexis. The man gave the group a rude gesture and ran off, leaving his ripped card behind. Chazz's shoulders slumped as he picked up the pieces

"What's goin' on here?" Atem looked up to see the other lead volunteer Jesse run up to the group. "Chazz? What are you doin' here? I thought you said you didn't want to volunteer."

"I just now found him decking one of the other volunteers in the face! I still haven't gotten a good reason out of him." Alexis huffed. Chazz studied the ripped card, then sighed. His face fell back into a scowl and he threw the pieces towards Jesse for him to catch.

"Oh no…" Jesse breathed. A small blue cat-like duel spirit laid across Jesse's shoulder. She mewled in sadness as she looked at the pieces. Jesse reached up and pet the creature to help reassure her.

"What is up with you two? Sure, it was very immature to rip his card just because he lost, but he doesn't deserve all this." Alexis asked.

"It's nothin' Alexis, just duel spirit stuff." Jesse sighed. Alexis shook her head.

"It's always duel spirit stuff, why can't you guys just tell me what's up?" She asked. The two boys looked up helplessly. Atem could guess that they had tried to explain duel spirits to her before, probably to no avail. Alexis sighed again.

"Can you at least tell me why you're here Chazz? You were very adamant about only coming to New Domino to meet your old classmates again. Our class reunion isn't until tomorrow night."

"That was my plan. Until…" Chazz said as he started to look around the site. "I was hanging out in my five-star hotel, all relaxed until your boyfriend's damned duel spirit kept trying to push me out of the room!" Chazz said as he pointed to Jesse.

"Yeah, he really wanted the boss to be here. He wouldn't take no for an answer!" The yellow monster added. This made Jesse laugh.

"I'm sure. Winged Kuriboh can be a bit pushy at times. Maybe he just wanted the class reunion to happen sooner?" Jesse said apologetically. "I haven't seen Jaden all day. You know how he likes to disappear. Where is Winged Kuriboh anyways?" Jesse asked. Atem then looked to his side to see the Kuriboh jumping up and down by his hiding place. "Ah, there you are you little rascal. Now, where's Jaden-?" Jesse looked over the pile to see Atem sitting there. Atem's mouth pulled into a straight line, this was not a good position to be found in.

"Hi?" Jesse greeted. Atem quickly stood up with Winged Kuriboh dancing around him.

"Oh, looks like we have a little spy." Alexis smiled, but her smile soon disappeared when Atem's aura hit her. Atem decided it wasn't worth trying to hide anything and apologized for eavesdropping.

"Yeah, sure," Chazz said. All he and the others knew was that this kid was not supposed to be here. Every cell in their bodies was telling them so. Atem could see their distrust and knew this wouldn't end well. He apologized again and started to walk away when his eyes rested upon the pieces of card.

"What that guy did was horrible."

"Yes finally, another person understands!" Chazz exhaled. "Wait…? You can see duel monsters too?" Winged Kuriboh was floating near Atem's head at the time so he gently rested his hand on the creature. Winged Kuriboh purred and pushed into Atem. Jesse then looked to the top of the hill Atem fell down and back to Winged Kuriboh.

"He is pushy today." Jesse smiled,

"Why were you brought here by Winged Kuriboh? You're too young to have graduated from our class." Chazz asked.

"Guys, still here. Still thinking you guys are crazy and talking about imaginary friends." Alexis said. Before someone could answer her a call came from up the hill.

"Uncle Atem!" Everyone looked up to see AJ trying to run down the hill but he tripped. Atem's defense instincts immediately kicked in. Years of experience protecting Yugi from bullies went into action as Atem vaulted the building pile. He reached out and caught AJ before the tumbling boy could hit a stack of iron pipes.

"Thanks, Uncle." AJ grinned. "I figured out the riddle but I couldn't find Dad or Uncle Joey. So, I thought I'd tell you!" Atem exhaled all the breath in his lungs as he had AJ stand up. The others came running up too but stayed a few steps back.

"You ok?" Atem breathed.

"Yeah, yeah I'm fine, but do you want to hear the answer?!"

"Tell me then." Atem sighed.

"It's progress! I can show you my progress, like how I can now read this Japanese label and know that these are iron pipes." AJ said as he pointed to the bars that almost skewered him. "But you can't 'see' my progress. Get it?" AJ squeaked.

"Very good AJ." Atem smiled wearily. AJ's eyes then snapped to the group behind Atem.

"Oh, My, Ra. It's Chazz Princeton!" AJ squealed. This immediately made Chazz puff out his chest as the kid came running up to him. "The famous Ojama master!"

"Boss, look! A fan!" The yellow monster cheered. Atem guessed that these three monsters were the famous Ojamas.

As soon as AJ came up Chazz bent down to better talk to the ten-year-old. Atem was surprised to see Chazz's rough persona melt away when he was chatting with AJ. He happily answered all of AJ's many questions and even signed one of AJ's cards. Atem looked to Alexis and Jesse as they stood to the side.

"Wow, he really is good with the fans. You would have never guessed if you had seen him when he was in Duel Academy." Alexis whispered.

"Yeah. Even though he doesn't have the highest winnin' streak in pro duelin', he has one of the biggest fan bases." Jesse whispered back.

"I love watching you on TV! It's great when less popular monsters are used in pro dueling." AJ beamed.

"Well, it is hard to use my deck. Anyone less skilled would have no chance with these annoying monsters, but that's why I'm a master." Chazz boasted.

"I would love if you showed me in person! Uh… Uncle!"

"Oh no." Atem looked into the pleading eyes of his nephew. He was stuck.

"I promise my uncle is an amazing duelist. He even gives my dad a run for his money! Can you battle him, please?" AJ begged. Atem could still tell the others didn't trust him, but he could also see the excitement in Chazz's eyes. A passion only true duelists had.

"Sure, why not? I got nothing better to do. Wanna duel kid?" Chazz said as he put on his duel disk and activated it. Atem pulled out his own deck. Over the last few nights, he and Yugi worked together to update it. They even battled a few times for the fun of it. Just as before this deck was infused with both Atem's and Yugi's emotions. Atem knew this deck would serve him well.

"You're on." Atem smiled. He borrowed a duel disk from Jesse and the two duelists took their place.

"Now don't get upset kid. You may have won against your brother, but now you're fighting a pro duelist. This is going to be leagues tougher than any causal duel." Chazz grinned. Atem gave a small smile back. While he was embarrassed to admit it, he lived for the moments when he could surprise enemies with his power.

"Duel."


	19. The King of Games

The talk with Joey did not end the way Yugi had wanted. Joey was still acting a little too perky and now he was extra defensive. Yugi hated seeing his friend hurt like that, the friend that had spent so much time and energy making sure Yugi himself was happy. Now though, Yugi found it best to leave him alone for a while. He had asked too many questions and was on the verge of making Joey more upset. He had left Joey with the others so they at least would keep him company. Now to find where his two Atems ran off to.

"I now use my three Ojamas to create, Ojama King!" Yugi heard a voice announce. He then saw as a few volunteers slide down a hill ahead of him. Yugi ran to the top of the hill and looked down to see Atem dueling with a small crowd of people surrounding him and his opponent. Atem had only Big Shield Gardna on his side of the field (in attack mode no less) and one facedown card. His opponent had one face down and a massive ugly white monster that he just summoned, the thing stood near tall enough to look Yugi in the eye.

Atem looked up with surprise at the beast. It was enormous, but it had only 0 attack points, like the rest of the Ojamas in Chazz's deck. All this king's strength went to 3000 defense points. If Atem had learned anything over the years, he knew never to underestimate a weaker looking foe.

"Now my king's special ability activates. You can no longer use the remaining monster card zones on the field." Chazz said. To show this, Atem's spaces for monster cards went dark on his duel disk. "Since I still have an Ojama monster on the field, Ojama Country's field spell effect stays activate, meaning all attack and defense points are still flipped. I have to admit you were smart, kid. Using your Big Shield Gardna's 2600 defense points as attack points when I first pulled out this little field spell. Most amateur duelists would have given up there and then." Chazz smiled as he lazily leaned back on one leg, radiating complete confidence. "But now it's time for me to use it to my advantage!" Atem stared as Ojama King gained 3000 attack points, slamming its fists together to show its new strength.

"Oh, I don't know who I want to win! I love my uncle but I would also love it if Chazz won too. I wouldn't have asked for this if I had known how torn I'd be!" AJ moaned. Alexis smiled at the kid as he paced back and forth on the sideline.

"I have to say; your uncle is doing amazing. Most people don't last this long against Chazz without losing a single life point." She said.

"That's about to change Alexis! Go, Ojama King!" Chazz declared. The beast jumped into the air and started diving at Atem's only monster.

"Not so fast, I activate Mirror Force!" Atem yelled as his facedown flipped up.

"Wow, that's a rare card. I thought it went out of print years ago." Alexis said.

"Yep. My dad has most of the last copies. He gave one to his brother." AJ happily answered, wanting to share any information he had. This made Alexis look on with even more interest at the battle.

"I'll counter with my own card, Galaxy Cyclone!" Chazz yelled. Mirror Force shattered and the attack went through. Atem took the first points of damage in this duel.

"Good counter!" Atem yelled across the field. Chazz answered with his own smile.

"Yeah, I know. You're not so bad yourself kid, but can you counter a 3000-point monster when all your defense is attack?" Chazz grinned. He loved this part of the duel. When he could really see what his opponents were made of, and still crush them. "Now is the time when this game really begins!"

"I draw!" Atem announced as he pulled out his next card. He really was in a bind here. None of his monsters' defense points even came close to equaling that behemoth's. Meaning he had to somehow destroy that Ojama Country field spell. He was not losing this duel.

He smiled as he looked at the cards in his hand, the heart of the cards had done it for him again.

"I sacrifice half my life points to activate Dark Magic Curtain. Now I can summon an old friend of mine onto the field!" The small audience gasped as a great curtain fell over the field and covered it in darkness. It then disappeared to reveal Dark Magician standing in front of Atem.

"Wait! That card is out of print! There's only three of him in the entire world!" Chazz shouted. Now both Alexis and Jesse were looking back to AJ with questioning eyes.

"My dad really wanted Atem's deck to be strong. Speaking of dad..." AJ said as he looked up the hill. He wildly waved at Yugi. He waved back and started taking steps to slowly make his way down the hill. It was a measured pace until Winged Kuriboh flew right into his back. Duel spirits can't usually interact with the human world, but they can interact with humans if they have enough energy. This energy is made by the relationship these duel spirits have with their cardholders, good or evil. The force Winged Kuriboh possessed was ten times its size, enough to shove Yugi right off balance.

Atem looked up the hill to see Yugi wildly rolling down it. He nearly dropped his duel disk so he could run to Yugi's aid, but the man soon righted himself before falling all the way down the hill.

"Wow, that hill has attacked most of us Mutos today, hasn't it?" AJ laughed as he ran up beside Atem.

"Muto?!" Chazz yelped. Atem looked back to Chazz, then to the small group of volunteers. They were all starting to connect the dots. The rare cards, the last name, it became even clearer when Yugi finally stood up at the bottom of the hill with his bandana and glasses scatter farther up.

"Oh… darn." Yugi whispered as everyone stared at him and his unmistakable hair. Winged Kuriboh came flying down and landed on Yugi's head, obviously proud of himself.

"I'M FIGHTING THE KING OF GAMES'S BROTHER?!" Chazz gasped. His Ojama spirits did the same. Two even disappeared in fear. Atem couldn't help it, one of his old wicked smiles spread across his face as he took off his own bandana.

"As you said, it's game time." Atem grinned. He then activated Dark Magic Attack. His Dark Magician raised his staff and fired at Chazz's side of the field. His field spell exploded in a great cloud of smoke, leaving his king with zero attack points. This in combination with Atem's unsettling aura made Chazz fall back in fear.

"Dark Magician, attack," Atem said simply. The monster turned his staff on the defenseless Ojama King and in one quick move the massive beast was gone. Chazz lost more than half his life points.

Chazz stayed on the ground, staring in a mixture of shock and fear. Atem couldn't help but feel a little proud to bring a pro duelist to a state such as this. He then noticed that he had caused most of the audience to fall silent too, one man wearing a red hat even running away. AJ looked creeped out himself. Atem put his hand on his forehead, half expecting to feel the Eye of Wdjat there. Thankfully it wasn't, but he shouldn't even have to worry about this! A shudder shot up his spine. Atem's breathing shallowed as the shadows around seemed to shudder with him.

Chazz didn't seem to be moving from his spot, Atem took it as an equal agreement to quit the duel. As the monsters disappeared, he ran to Yugi's side.

"That was quite a move you pulled off there." Yugi smiled, originally seeming not to even notice the difference in atmosphere.

"Are you ok?" Atem asked.

"Fine, fine. Now might be the time to leave, before-"

"It's Yugi Muto!" Someone shrieked. This was enough to snap everyone back to reality and they came racing forward. Atem instincts kicked in, but before he could do anything rash Yugi, in one fluid motion, pulled the teen towards him. Placing himself between Atem and the crowd. Yugi continued the movement as he pulled the duel disk off Atem's arm and placed it on his own, switching in his deck. In a pillar of red light, Gandora appeared in front of the two, creating a holographic wall of teeth and claws.

"Please, Back Off," Yugi said in an even voice. Gandora made sure to echo that command with a roar.

The people stopped dead in their tracks. In the back of their mind, they knew KaibaCorp would never let their holograms become physical enough to harm a person; they also knew that high ranked duelists have been thrown around by holographic monsters during pro duels. This group did not feel like testing out how solid a card literally called the Dragon of Destruction was.

"Ok, everyone! Back to work. I know you people don't want to create a mindless mob to bother the King of Games so I suggest you all get back to what you were doing." Alexis clapped. Her authority plus the dragon standing guard made everyone reluctantly slink away. It was just the Mutos and the two graduates from Duel Academy.

"…I was dueling someone that gives the King of Games a run for his money…" Chazz muttered. Jesse gave a nervous laugh and helped Chazz to his feet. Chazz stayed stock still for a few moments then whooped. "I was fighting someone equal to the King of Games… and surviving! Sure, I lost a good chunk of my life points but that doesn't mean I couldn't turn it around next round!" Chazz said excitedly. As his classmate patted him on the back, AJ came running up to his father and showed him the card that Chazz had signed.

"I finally got Chazz Princeton's autograph! Another one to add to the collection." AJ's grin spread from ear to ear.

"Ah, so that's who you were dueling Atem. Only back a week and you're already battling the pros." Yugi smiled. Atem was still on high alert for any more unwanted watchers and more importantly, any sign of the shadows. Yugi rested his hand on Atem's shoulder. "Breath Atem." This snapped Atem out of his defense mode. The hologram disappeared and Atem put on a smile after taking a few deep breaths.

"That was a good duel Chazz. I apologize for ending it earlier but I believe we have to go before the word gets around that Yugi Muto is here." Atem said. Yugi nodded and handed the duel disk back to Jesse who was asking for it.

"Thank you for letting us use that." He said. He then looked to Chazz. His eyes suddenly narrowed as he studied the pro duelist. "I feel like I have seen you somewhere before. Not in pro dueling though." Yugi said. Chazz shifted his weight uncomfortably.

"I'm all over, maybe you saw me at a convention?" He tried.

"No… somewhere else," Yugi said as he put his hand to his chin. This made Chazz sigh.

"Of course, the King of Games would only know me for this." He whispered to himself. "You probably saw my family during the great Princeton scandal. Let me make it clear that my family disowned me a long time ago. I had nothing to do with my older brother embezzling billions or my oldest brother's attempt to assassinate the Prime Minister. All my money is my own and I'm glad those two as- amazingly flawed people are in jail." Chazz said, making sure to self-censor for his little fan. The Mutos noticed how monotone Chazz's voice became when he spoke. He must have given this speech hundreds of times.

"No, it's not that," Yugi said. He then snapped his finger and smiled. "You created the Ojama Home for Cards!" Yugi proudly declared. Atem was absolutely confused by that name but Chazz seemed to lighten up when he heard Yugi say it.

"You know about that?"

"Of course, I do. I love and support anything duelist do to help duel spirits. Especially ones that would have otherwise been thrown away." Yugi smiled. This made Jesse smile too as he took a step forward.

"Hey, I work there too! I'm actually the CEO while Chazz is off making the money in the pro leagues." He smiled. Atem looked to Yugi for information but it was AJ that spoke.

"It's a service that will buy any monster cards you don't want anymore, be it at a very, very low price." AJ smiled.

"It's a money hole that I just don't get," Alexis said as she joined the conversation after making sure the volunteers were working again. "You get nothing but common monsters. Doesn't it take more money to keep going then the money you make by selling the few rare cards you do get?" She asked.

"That's why I'm a pro duelist too," Chazz said. Alexis crossed her arms and raised an eyebrow.

"Oh, I'm sure Chazz and this boy here get some other reward for their small business." Yugi smiled, guessing that Alexis didn't get to see the thankful duel spirits that the Card House saved from the dump.

"Oh! I'm Jesse Anderson by the way. It's amazin' to meet you Mr. King of Games." Jesse grinned as he roughly shook Yugi's hand.

"Please, just call me Yugi," he said, emphasizing the, please.

"And I'm Alexis Rhodes. A teacher at Duel Academy." She said as she too shook Yugi's hand. As she was pulling away, her ring slipped off her hand and fell to the ground. Chazz and Jesse were too preoccupied with Yugi to notice. "Not again. I just got this ring so it hasn't been fitted yet." Alexis moaned. AJ quickly picked up the ring and handed it to her.

"It's an engagement ring, right? I can tell it's very expensive and not something you would wear to a construction site unless it was important to you." AJ said. This immediately got the attention of her two classmates. They almost ran over AJ to see the ring.

"Is it really?!" Jesse asked.

"Does that mean!?" Chazz breathed. Alexis blushed and nodded.

"ZANE TRUESDALE FINALLY DID IT. HALLELUJAH!" Jesse cheered as Chazz just about fell over in surprise. Strings of questions soon swarmed the laughing Alexis. Yugi took this time to lead the two Atems away. He quickly collected everyone else in the site, right as people were starting to swarm him too. The group ran to the taxi and set it for their homes.

"Sorry I had to cut the duel short guys. I wasn't expecting to blow my cover so quickly." Yugi apologized.

"It's fine Yuge. We were gettin' tired anyways." Joey smiled. This actually made Yugi smile too. Joey seemed much better now, he honestly looked happy. Maybe that outburst earlier was because he didn't sleep well last night. Yugi had to hope that for now. He then looked to Atem beside him. He was leaning up against the window and not even looking at anyone, what used to be the usual Atem behavior. However, the teen had started to open up these last three weeks of being in the living world and Yugi was not thrilled to see the boy so quiet again. Yugi knew something was up and decided now was an as good time as ever to ask with everyone distracted talking about their own things. He leaned over and whispered to Atem.

"What happened back there?" This made Atem perk up.

"What do you mean?"

"It's game time?" Yugi asked in a low voice, remembering back to the first few months after he solved the Millennium Puzzle. Always waking up smelling of chloroform or smoke with those very words ringing through his head. Atem frowned, guilt showing through his regal features.

"The Shadows… they are locked away but… I can hear them again or something like them. Because of them, I've almost started a shadow game or two when my emotions got high." Atem breathed. Yugi nodded, looking out the window then back to Atem. They were passing the site of the new Ener-D tower.

"Talk to me tomorrow. No one will be home other than Chell." Yugi whispered. Before he could say more, Marik asked Yugi a question clearly wanting to start a conversation. He was talking about how tomorrow he was going to see if his business would finally be rebuilt. Yugi gave a sad smile to Atem and turned to the others.

* * *

"I still can't believe he finally proposed!" Jesse cheered. That night, to celebrate her engagement the two brought Alexis to a famous American diner in town called Burger World.

"I can't believe it either." Alexis beamed. "After his brother died, Zane just wasn't himself, he even needed to use his wheelchair again. I thought it was going to get worse when Kaiba finally showed off Turbo Dueling. Seeing his brother's creation being promoted in someone else's name… I didn't know how he'd react. But seeing the duel kind of lit a spark in him. He suddenly had a lot more energy and drive. He proposed to me this morning. No wheelchair required." Jesse clapped in response to the story as Chazz continued to stab his side salad with a fork.

"I still think it's scummy what KaibaCorp did, buying up Zane's company when he was at his most vulnerable. Now Kaiba's going to get the credit for all of the Truesdales' hard work." Chazz growled. Alexis sadly nodded.

"I suppose that's just how it is sometimes. There is a bright side however, the money KaibaCorp paid to buy Truesdale Brothers was much more than needed. I could retire from teaching now and we could probably live off it for another hundred years." Alexis said.

"That's good, maybe it's Kaiba's way of makin' it up to Zane?" Jesse tried.

"I doubt it. Seto may have been one of the pioneers of dueling, but he has no heart. Even my own family see him as cold. He's probably up there in his big tower laughing at us as he rolls in his money." Chazz continued to growl.

"What's up with you Chazz? You're not usually this much of a jerk. Did the duel spirits keep you up again last night?" Jesse asked. Chazz realized then that he was leaving marks in his salad bowl and let go of his fork. He looked to Alexis's wedding ring and then out the window to the silhouette of KaibaCorp's massive HQ.

"It's just… Our class reunion is going to be so small this year. Just us, Jaden, and Zane; we are all that's left of our school friend group." Chazz sighed. This made the others look down. Bastion, Hassleberry, Aster, even Atticus were all gone.

Chazz He looked across the booth to the few people in the world that put up with him. They were both frowning now. He hadn't meant to depress them. He looked down at Alexis's ring again and knew it wasn't just KaibaCorp and lost friends that had put him in a bad mood tonight. Damn… he really was a jerk. "I'm sorry, for everything. We're supposed to be celebrating right now, not mourning." Chazz tried. This made Jesse look around the room to try and find something to change the subject.

"Hey look, it's that guy that ran away from your duel with Atem." Jesse said. The others quickly glanced across the nearly empty diner to see the red hat man serving a large group of people across the room.

"He works here?" Alexis asked.

"By these newspaper clippings on the wall, he's been running this place for nineteen years. Even bought this specific store from the chain it was attached to." Chazz said as he pointed to one of the various newspapers cutouts adorning the wall.

"I don't know. He's giving me a creepy vibe." Alexis said.

"Ok then let's focus on something else. Uh, here is a newspaper clipping about how Tea Gardner used to work here."

"Woah, really?" This perked everyone up as they looked at the picture of the young movie star.

* * *

"Thanks to this trainer card I now have three electric energy and I will use them to… Yugi are you even listening?" Rebecca asked. The two were out in the front yard surrounded by bushes and trees. Yugi had been staring off into space the last few turns. When his wife called him out on it Yugi immediately shook his head and looked down at the card game they were playing. Saturday night was always their date night. It was the one thing in their crazy schedule that they agreed to keep constant, no matter the world ending events around them. They mostly did small things like watch a movie together or in most cases, played a game. That night was supposed to be the last warm evenings before the autumn chill set in. The two decided to enjoy it.

"Sorry Bec, my head's just in the clouds tonight." Yugi apologized as Rebecca finished her turn. The two were testing out the newest addition to their already popular card game series. Ten months meant Yugi had a lot to catch up on regarding his smash hit game.

"I can tell. I'm glad you are finally relaxing tomorrow, it looks like you need it." Rebecca said.

"It's not that I'm tired, it's just that I've had a lot of thoughts to work through lately. Are you still sure you're ok with taking AJ to that meet-and-greet with Tessa tomorrow?" Yugi asked as he absently played his turn.

"I'm just fine with it. It'll give me some alone time with AJ and you some rest." Rebecca replied. She then exploited Yugi's opening, decimated his active monster and taking his last prize card.

"Wow, you won Rebecca. Good game." Yugi said. Rebecca looked Yugi in the eyes as she rested her head on her hands.

"What's wrong?" She asked. Yugi suddenly pitched forward, hitting his head on the table.

"What was that for Gandora?!" Yugi yelled to thin air. Rebecca giggled as Yugi reached up and grabbed what looked like nothing. "Was I really that slow when it came to petting you that you had to push me?" Yugi grumbled. He was using a squeaky voice, like when he was talking to a baby or an animal. He was silent a moment, listening to words Rebecca could never hear. "Yes, yes you did well today but that does not give you the right to squish me into the table." Yugi scolded. Eventually, Yugi reached up and pet the air. "There, happy?"

"I think she is." Rebecca smiled. What she would give to actually see these creatures Yugi cared so much about. Then again, maybe it was funnier to see her husband wrestle the air.

Eventually, Yugi turned back to Rebecca and sighed.

"Rude, isn't she? All she wants is sleep, pats, and battle. You think a dragon of destruction would understand the importance of date night." Yugi joked. Rebecca laughed but returned to her searching gaze from earlier.

"What are you thinking about so intently that led the King of Games to lose?" Rebecca once again asked. Yugi sighed and looked over at Gandora curled around the table.

"What if I retired from professional dueling, right now? What if I wasn't the King of Games anymore?" He nearly whispered. This made Rebecca sit up.

"What do you mean?"

"I… I don't want to be a pro dueler anymore and I definitely do not want the King of Games title to retire with me. I want the next generation to have it. Now I know a good deal of our paycheck comes from that title and tournaments so I could do a few more tournaments and-" Yugi immediately stopped babbling when Rebecca reach across the table and rested her hand on his.

"I want to know where this is coming from." She uttered. Yugi clasped his hands around her's.

"It's not what you're thinking of, I'm not being scared off by the motorcycles, or the paparazzi. It's something I've been thinking about for a while. A few years in fact. The King of Games is supposed to be the public face of Duel Monsters, someone all duelists strive to be or beat." Yugi looked away and sighed.

"When I watch pro duels or even just street duel like at the construction site today, I see a true passion for the game. Something that I haven't had for a long time." Yugi said. He then reached into his pocket and pulled out his own deck.

"I flinch at the title whenever it is used, prefer to keep to myself, and haven't kept up with the duel world in years. Now, I will always love Duel Monsters, with all I have been through I don't think there is a way for me not to. However, it's not my entire life anymore. I can't throw myself into the dueling world and culture like the King of Games should. I want to work on my own games." Yugi looked into Rebecca's eyes and held her hand tighter. "I want time to be here with my family. It's time for someone else to take the throne. Someone that could better show the world his or her love for dueling."

Rebecca stayed silent, analyzing everything Yugi had said. Her silence began to worry Yugi, maybe he was being selfish. He had an amazing job and he was just throwing it away?

"Are you absolutely sure? I don't think you can gain it back once you relinquish it."

"Absolutely."

"Ok. Let's figure out what we have to do. Now usually I'd say to call Industrial Illusions since it was their CEO that originally gave you the title but with it being a part of KaibaCorp now…" A relieved smile spread across Yugi's face as Rebecca continued to talk. He had her support, sometimes that's all he needed.

"You know, Kaiba's not going to take this well."


	20. Shadows

"YOU'RE JUST GIVING UP YOUR TITLE?!" Yugi had to hold the video call away from him, for his ears' sake.

"Seto, try to understand-"

"NO, YOU UNDERSTAND YUGI! YOU HAVE ADAMANTLY DEFENDED THAT TITLE FOR OVER TWENTY YEARS AND NOW YOU JUST WANT TO GIVE IT AWAY?! WITHOUT EVEN A FIGHT!?"

Atem slowly looked over the stair banister to Yugi down below in the living room. He had been woken up by screams. Usually, he'd be used to it, every night since he's gotten here, he's had a nightmare of some kind. Not bad enough to tell Yugi about it, but today the screams weren't his own dream's creation.

"Hey, when you want to retire, I'm going to congratulate, not yell at you! Besides I'm not leaving without a fight, that wouldn't do justice to the title. That's why I was calling you. I was thinking maybe a tournament could be set up to find the next King/Queen of Games?" Yugi said. This seemed to calm Seto down a bit but his face was still twisted with rage and surprise.

"So, what? All so you can throw the duel at the very end?"

"No, no. This would be publicly advertised as my retirement tournament. This competition could bring together the best the dueling world has to offer, I even have a few suggestions for participants. Then each is eliminated until there's only one left. I would fight whoever won the tournament to my fullest. They would get the title no matter who won. This duel would just be to see if I retired with my winning streak intact or not." Yugi said. Seto's face remained the same. "Err, it's just an idea. It might be better for me just to pass on the title to someone. If you think of something better, I trust you. You're much more experienced in these kinds of things." This made Seto silently sit back, the gears clearly spinning in his head. Atem's head was spinning too. Yugi had talked about wanting something like this back in the hospital in Cairo but Atem didn't think he has actually going to do it.

"I'll get back to you," Seto said. With a click, the call was over and Yugi sighed in relief. He flopped back on the couch and threw the phone aside.

"You are truly going through with it?" Yugi sat up when he saw Atem come down the stairs. It was rare when Atem wasn't the first to be up in the morning, this is why everyone did their best to be extra quiet as they left.

"Hey Atem, sleep well?" Yugi asked. Atem's brow furrowed. He looked at the phone, then to Yugi.

"You're giving up dueling?" This made Yugi's eyes widen.

"Oh no. Nothing like that. You know I've been wanting to retire from pro dueling. I'm just handing off the King of Games title to the next generation. I'm not giving up the game." He watched Atem's next moves carefully. Atem's views on this were one of the opinions Yugi had wanted to know the most.

Atem remained silent, his face giving away no emotion. It was always hard to read Atem when he became like this, even for Yugi. Many years of being a monarch had trained him well in keeping his true emotions hidden. To the point that, when Atem really wanted, even someone who had shared a brain with him for 4 years had troubles reading him.

"I know you're trying to hide something so just let it out." Yugi continued. "I would like to hear what you are thinking. We did win this title together." Atem's body slightly drooped but Yugi couldn't observe any other changes.

"I guessed this was coming. Do any others know?" Atem asked.

"Rebecca and Seto are the only humans that know for sure. However, Joey and Bakura won't be surprised and might have already guessed." Yugi said.

"Your idea for how to pass the title on sounds interesting, though I'm sure Kaiba will make changes," Atem commented. Yugi sighed.

"I hope so, my idea wasn't a perfect one," Yugi answered. Atem nodded then headed for the kitchen. When he left Yugi let out another long sigh. It was like watching Atem slam shut that dark door on his side of the soul. No matter how much Yugi pleaded or banged, Atem wouldn't open it until he felt ready. "Aren't we just talkative today," Yugi said to himself as he too got up and headed for the kitchen.

Atem was stubbornly looking through the pantry for anything edible. Ever since the kitchen 3D printer became a household necessity, most foods were not kept whole in a storeroom or a refrigerator anymore. Instead, almost any food could be made exactly to order from a combination of prepackaged materials that were fed into the printer. All that was edible in the "pantry" was odd things like extra salt or the rare leftover.

"What do you want Atem?" Yugi said as he turned on the machine. Atem jumped at its beeping but quickly hid his surprise by pretending to stretch.

"Just trying to find some breakfast. I don't want something made by that machine, however. It never tastes quite right." Atem said. Yugi shrugged and started to help Atem's futile search to find food elsewhere.

"I have heard some people say that, though I have never noticed a difference," Yugi said. He was taking any conversation he could get with Atem, he did not want the teen going quiet on him. Yugi managed to find some leftover garlic butter, Atem quickly grabbed it. He had managed to uncover some bread and used the butter to make simple garlic bread.

"Maybe that's what I find strange about it. In the past, we have had very different taste buds." Atem said. This made Yugi laugh. He remembered back to when he had tried to show the spirit, he had just befriended, the beauty of burgers. The ensuring experience... With Atem in control, his brain said that the burger was awful, and Yugi's body said it was delicious. This discrepancy caused both of them to be sick.

"With all the things similar between us, it's strange our tastes ended up different." Yugi smiled as Atem continued to munch on the garlic bread, something Yugi would have hated. Atem smiled back. He then looked out the kitchen blinds to see Gandora attempting to play with some fallen leaves and getting frustrated every time her body went through the dead leaves.

"We also ended up very different spirit partners, didn't we?" Atem pointed out. Yugi then moved to the window to see Gandora's continued battle with the red leaves.

"Yes, though I think that I came out with the better partner. Who needs a beloved best friend that has sworn to protect you through space and time when you can have a large cat that explodes in her end phase?" Yugi snickered. Atem nodded then walked outside without another word.

There weren't many red leaves on the ground. Despite this Atem couldn't help but stare at the signs of fall. Where he was raised in Egypt seasonal change like this did not happen. When he was the first witness to this change, he didn't have the capacity to marvel at it yet. The second year Yugi had to sit down with Atem in their soul room and assure him that the trees growing blood red was normal. Now it was counted as one of the most beautiful phenomimes Atem had witnessed.

Yugi came out next, he quietly walked up to Atem's side. He then sat down next to the teen on the porch and looked out across the yard.

"October's nearly over. It's a little weird for me since the season I saw before… you know, was winter. My body has not quite gotten used to the fact that we skipped spring and summer." Yugi chatted. Atem nodded again and sat down too.

"If you think that's weird just compare that to me. I'm used to only two seasons, hot and slightly less hot." Atem said. Yugi smiled but was getting tired of these dead-end conversations. He was thinking of how to start the real talk. He was worried that thanks to his decision earlier, Atem had shut himself off for the day. With Atem's actions yesterday they needed to talk, now. In that construction site, Yugi recognized the presence before him, even though his soul was never awake when it appeared in the past. He could almost feel the dark presences that sent so many criminal and bullies to the mental institution standing before him.

"Sooo, the shadows?" Yugi began, decided to forgo any more dancing around the subject. Atem looked to Yugi with a half-smile.

"Deciding to try the Joey route of interrogation?" He asked.

"If you mean threatening then no, I still detest violence. But if you mean skipping this wandering chatter then, dis is how it's got to be. I gotta know what's goin' on with you Atem. I can't protect you if I don't know what I'm fightin'." Yugi said, doing a surprisingly good impression. Atem smile turned into a whole smile.

"You don't need to worry about protecting me Yugi. That's my job, I swore it since the day you put that last piece in the puzzle." Atem said absently. It was such an ingrain truth in him that he hadn't thought of what he said until he turned back to Yugi. There was a fire in the man's eyes that Atem rarely saw from an outside perspective.

"Atem, your work is supposed to be done. You would be on the road to peace now if it wasn't for me. It's time you dropped the tough monarch act and actually talk to me. Let me help." If anyone else had talked to Atem like that, he would have immediately pushed them away. Hardening his walls even further. But this was Yugi. The sweet, naïve boy that had accepted the spirit when he was at his worst. The boy that helped pull Atem back into the light when his sanity was on the very brink of collapsing. Back when the shadows had been all he knew.

Atem sighed, he then did something against what had been drilled into him as a monarch, what had been drilled into him as Yugi's protector. He showed a sign of weakness. He leaned into Yugi, resting his head on Yugi's shoulder.

"I don't know what to do," Atem mumbled, the word felt very strange coming out of his mouth. "I am completely lost." Sure, he had asked for help in the past, but never so fully was he admitting that he had no control of the situation. This change immediately got Yugi's attention. He too knew the significance of Atem letting down his guard like this.

"Tell me what you can." Yugi urged. Atem closed his eyes, letting out all his pent-up worries.

"To explain what I call the shadows, I need to start from the beginning. Did you ever find out how the millennium items were made? They were made out of souls of ninety-nine sacrificed humans. Their anger and negativity were what powered the millennium items." Atem briefly looked up to Yugi for any sign of judgment, there was none.

"It allowed us to look into others' souls, create portals to the duel monster world, and start the shadow games. What we didn't know was this shadow magic could only be used if it were in some way connected to a dark force, in our case, Zorc. The Millennium Items let us use his power without directly connecting ourselves to him, which is why we didn't realize the evil we were unlocking. When we found out our mistake, us holders of millennium items chose to lock away the shadow games and in turn, lock away Zorc."

"And your soul too," Yugi said. Atem nodded.

"Correct. We knew even back then our spell would not be strong enough to keep Zorc forever. I was locked away too, along with other plans being implemented so that when Zorc rose again, we could lock him away permanently."

"Ok… I know all this. Is Zorc getting out again or something?"

"No. He's gone for good. But that is what confuses… and scares me about these shadows and the shadow magic I've almost used… Do you know why I was chosen to be the one locked away in the puzzle? Out of all the priests?"

"Err, because you were the pharaoh?" Yugi tried.

"Trust me, the priests were trying to find any excuse not to send me for that very reason. When my father found out how the millennium items were made, he sacrificed himself to the gods so that the shadows' anger would not come back on me. His sacrificed worked, I was immune to the shadows' physical attacks. Now think about a person's soul being locked away in the puzzle made up of these angry shadows. I was the only one that could do it and not get instantly ripped apart. Those half-souls couldn't physically hurt me or my spirit, but they could chip away at my mind. They whispered to me the entirety of my five-thousand-year imprisonment. Slowly making me believe I was nothing but a being of shadows myself. They're the reason that when I came out of the puzzle it was so…"

"Wrathful?"

"Insane," Atem said flatly. "I thought they'd be gone when Zorc was locked away." Atem continued. "I'd thought they would finally be at rest… Yet, I'm hearing them again, goading, whispering. But it can't be them, Zorc's gone, the items are gone. There is nothing to let anything like them exist in this world." Atem breathed. Yugi reached across and wrapped his arm around the teen. Atem leaned further into Yugi and croaked.

"Am I going crazy? Will I become like I was back then?"

Yugi looked out across the yard to over to the city skyline, trying to find any way to comfort his brother. He honestly had no experience with shadow magic other then what he had seen when he was a teen. He guessed that maybe he could use it too since Atem and he were supposed to be similar in abilities, but he had never tested that. Then there were shadows themselves. If they were just half-souls then how were they even able to get in this world without a millennium item to tie them down? Yugi eyes then rested on the newly constructed Ener-D reactor. Seeing this suddenly gave Yugi an idea.

"Those shadows were the negativity of souls, right?" Yugi asked.

"I suppose."

"Didn't the Zero Reverse cause a wave of negativity to spread across the world?" He asked again. This made Atem look up.

"What are you getting at?" Atem asked.

"Does shadow magic have to connect to Zorc? Or could it be connected with other dark entities?"

"…Only a few years ago a number of shadow games were started by the power of an entity known as Nightshroud… I suppose any dark being can power shadow magic and in turn shadow games." Atem said. Yugi looked back to the Ener-D.

"I don't know much about dark magic, but maybe the shadows you are hearing aren't the same ones from the millennium puzzle. Maybe they are from the channel to the netherworld the Zero Reverse made." Yugi said.

Atem leaned forward as he thought about what Yugi said. The shadows he knew were not complete souls. They were just the leftover hatred and fear of those victims. It could be possible that the power he was feeling now was from the negative wave that exploded from the Zero Reverse. That would explain the whispers.

"What about the times I nearly started shadow games? Usually, I need a Millennium Item or an item similar to even attempt using shadow magic like that."

"Well, you said that the Millennium items ran on the souls' negativity, right? With you living so close to the Zero Reverse explosion, you might have all the power you need from that channel." Yugi guessed. Atem stared dumbfounded at his partner. Yugi continued to think, then perked up with another idea.

"You know what? That also might explain that weird aura of yours." Yugi continued. Atem looked on in disbelief. How was Yugi figuring all this out? "With you probably being the last master of shadow games, this negativity would center around you. Marik lost his powers when his evil side left, Bakura never used the magic without the Thief King, and any other modern millennium item holders didn't use their items for shadow magic." Yugi said. Atem blinked. His mouth hanging slightly open.

"…Ho-How are you figuring this all out? No offense Yugi, but there is no way you knew all this." This made Yugi stop. His eyes narrowed and he tilted his head in confusion.

"I don't know. I feel like…I've always known it... like I learned it in a dream?" Yugi thought back. As soon as Atem had explained the shadows Yugi had felt like something clicked in his head. Like hearing the answer to a riddle someone had told him long ago.

 _…We are not supposed to get involved in mortals' missions. That is why we are not telling Pharaoh Atem this and why you will only remember when you need it. We also will give you back, and add to your strength, on the recommendation of your friends._

 _Good luck Yugi! Keep Atem safe!_

 _Stay strong and don't come back to us, got it?_

Yugi shook his head. Where had he gotten that memory? It sounded like Tristan and Serenity were talking to him, along with another group of voices speaking as one.

As Yugi tried to reorganize his memories, Atem too was thinking. These were the best answers Atem had but there were still so many questions.

"Ok, let's say you are right. What do we do about it?" Atem asked. Yugi turned back to him just as unsure.

"I don't know. Why would dark forces even want to power shadow magic anyway?" Yugi asked.

"Well, every time it's used the dark power seeps into this dimension a little more. Shadow magic itself can, other than start shadow games, be used to change reality for a short time, clear a person of a power controlling them, and give duel monsters bodies in this dimension." Atem listed.

"Hmm, that would explain why the Earthbound Immortals would power something like that. But don't they need to control a person that has died before they can come into this world? Why waste time on powering shadow magic before then?" Yugi absently said to himself. Atem's jaw dropped.

"Where did you hear that?!" Atem demanded.

"Hear what?"

"That-That the Earthbound immortals need people to die before they can control them?! Or even the name Earthbound Immortals?! I've been looking everywhere for information on them!"

"Oh ya, to battle the Signers the Immortals needed an equal number of Dark Signers. They get them by bringing people back from death and controlling them." Yugi said, not even thinking about what he was saying. Like he had rehearsed this. Atem slowly got to his feet. He then turned and put both hands on Yugi's shoulder.

"Where, Did, You, Hear, This?" Atem said slowly. Yugi could only shrug.

"I don't know. I just kind of always knew?" Yugi said trying to think back to the voices and the white light.

"I have been running around all over this Ra forsaken city and you knew it all along?!" Atem growled.

"Hey! If you had actually opened up to me about this, maybe we could have figured this out sooner. There was no need to brood."

"Certain things were stopping me!" Atem shot back. "That-that does not matter now. Please, tell me everything you know. I can use this to finally get back to the afterlife." Atem breathed. This made Yugi pull back. That was the first time either of them has been able to even speak of the place.

"Ok, ok." Yugi quickly said as he got to his feet. He started to pace, racking his brain for any other bits of information. Even the vague memory of the voices was starting to disappear.

"Please Yugi, this is important to me," Atem begged. This caused Yugi to feel even worse, making it harder to think.

"Geez, what a bad time to need to remember something. I was up all night trying to figure out this title things." Yugi nervously chuckled, trying to calm himself down. Atem drooped a little further at the mention of the title. Eventually, Yugi stopped pacing and sighed.

"I-I don't remember anything. I'm sorry." Yugi stammered. "I don't even think I could rehearse to you what I just said." Atem's mouth fell into an obvious frown.

"Are you sure?" Atem pleaded.

"I'm so sorry. I'm just not in the right state of mind. Maybe after this King of Games thing is figured out, I can think better?" Yugi said. Atem then stood up, making sure not to make eye contact with Yugi and started back towards the house. Atem wasn't his usually level-headed self. A combination of the fatigue from finally releasing a month's worth of worries, being on edged thanks to nights of fitful sleep, and the hopes of soon being in the afterlife again being dashed, clouded his usually clear head. Then the whispering started, their voices even stronger with Atem's weakened state. They led him to a conclusion he would have never even considered in the past.

"Hey, it's all right. We'll figure this out." Yugi said as he tried to reach out to Atem. The teen pulled away from him.

"It is fine, I was expecting a bit much from you. Do not worry about it." Atem breathed. This comment made Yugi block Atem's way into the house.

"Please, let me help. I don't want you doing this alone Yami." Hearing his old nickname made Atem look up. Yugi was surprised at the look Atem was giving him. It was filled with anger, anger at Yugi.

"You don't have to pretend Yugi. I know you do not care about this. It is my problem, not your own." Atem said in an even voice like he was talking to a warring leader. Atem's awful aura was almost overpowering now, to the point Yugi's fists clenched as he looked over the pharaoh.

"I just found out about this. What made you think that I don't care?!" Yugi demanded.

"I understand Yugi, really I do. You have much more to focus on. You have a life, I was just a footnote in said life. You have no reason to care about this kind of thing or me." Atem said.

"Atem, what gave you that completely wrong idea?!" Yugi asked, more worried than angry.

"Yugi, we can read each other almost like books. I know. Just look at our title you are throwing away." This made Yugi freeze. His emotions were a mixture of confusion and now, rage. Atem simply nodded to him and tried to go back inside.

"Hey! We're not done talking yet!" Yugi yelled. He tried to reach out for Atem's shoulder again but Atem shot him a glance that froze Yugi to his very core.

"Do not touch me. I just want to do this and finally die! Maybe then you can fully get rid of everything regarding the King of Games!" Atem yelled back.

Atem looked back to see Yugi trembling and his face contorted. Atem immediately regretted everything. Every word, every thought, even getting out of bed today. Seeing Yugi's pain felt worse than any agony inflicted by shadow games or villains. He hated himself then.

"Yugi…. I-I I am sorry. I don't know what came over me. This still does not excuse my behavior but believe me when I say I never meant a word of it-" Atem then noticed Yugi's wide eyes on Atem's forehead. Atem suddenly felt like he had just run a mile. When he realized this his entire body went rigid. He slowly lifted his hand to his forehead. He felt the warm imprint of the Eye of Wdjat.

"No…" He then saw how Yugi's face was less contorted with hurt, but fear. Yugi's eyes kept flicking to Atem's left. A loud crunching came from that direction. The two slowly turned to see Gandora standing there holding the ripped remains of a leaf she finally managed to catch. She was just as confused as they were at the catch. She was no longer translucent like duel spirits were in this world.

* * *

"What an awesome day, isn't it Winged Kuriboh? I finally don't have the wear short sleeves!" A brown-haired man smiled. He was walking in a park with the floating puffball alongside him. The duel spirit jumped up and down to show its agreement. "I'm glad you're here with me today. I still have no idea where you went yesterday. Did you cause any trouble-?" The man stopped dead in his tracks and stared. A large black and red dragon came racing past him. It crashed into a row of trees and uprooted almost all of them. It paused a few moments then it continued on flying like it hadn't just destroyed the few remaining trees in Neo Domino. "Was-was that a duel spirit?" the man stammered. Winged Kuriboh had hidden behind its partner, not wanting to get mixed up with a shadow summoned Gandora.

Soon a car came racing past. Not even stopping for the trees.

"GANDORA YOU GET BACK HERE NOW! OF ALL THE TIMES YOU HAVE STAYED SLEEPING IN THE YARD YOU CHOOSE NOW TO GO ON A CITY-WIDE TOUR!?"

The man recognized that voice. He looked to Winged Kuriboh, then to the wreckage. He grinned as his eyes became heterochromic.

"This day just got a whole lot sweeter." Jaden smiled as he raced after the trouble.


	21. A Gentle Darkness

"Now that was very illegal so don't do it again and it never happened if Sector Security asks." Yugi explained to Atem as the teen climbed back into the front seat of the minivan. The two were currently chasing a flying Gandora through the streets of Neo Domino city in the family car. In the back seat was a screaming Chell. When Gandora first took off the two almost forgot about her sleeping upstairs. Thankfully Yugi remembered last second, but the time it took to get the child let Gandora get far ahead of them. Meaning Atem had to buckle Chell in her car seat while Yugi was racing after the dragon to make up for lost time. No one was happy with this.

"COME ON GANDORA! WE'LL FIGURE THIS OUT! JUST LAND!" Yugi yelled to the dragon. Gandora kept flying, whether she kept running away was because she was confused or just didn't want to stop Yugi didn't know. He then looked back to his other worry, Atem.

The teen looked horrible. There were now bags under his eyes and every movement seemed to drain away the last remaining bits of light in his face. The glowing eye on his forehead was long gone, much to Yugi's relief. The only other time he had seen such an eye was when past villains started shadow games. It didn't take Yugi long to connect Gandora's sudden body with Atem's shadow magic.

"Don't worry Atem, we'll get her back," Yugi said. Atem slightly nodded, the only sign that he was even aware of his surroundings. Yugi sighed and focused on the immediate threat.

Gandora was causing a whole heap of property damage. Yugi didn't think she meant it but with a name like Dragon of Destruction, he wouldn't put it past her. Either way, they didn't have time to stop now. Gandora took another turn and Yugi did his best to follow. He was going much faster than the speed limit so the turn causes almost everyone to fall out of their seats.

"Sorry!"

What was worse about this situation was that Yugi had no idea how to stop her. Gandora respected and loved Yugi, but when she was focused on something her tunnel vision could drill through mountains. He could only hope that Atem had some way to turn her back into a duel spirit.

"Look, she's stopping," Atem said with no life in his voice. He pointed to the dragon as she turned to land just out of view of the car.

"Ok guys this is also illegal, so just close your eyes," Yugi said as he turned the car ninety degrees and drove over the sidewalk. When they were finally back on the asphalt the Mutos found themselves in a familiar parking lot.

"Burger World?" Yugi asked as the great burger mascot stood towering over the group. The Mutos all quickly got out of the car and gawked as Gandora fully stood up, she was taller than the building and the mascot combined. She was glaring the massive burger in front of her.

"Ok Atem, this is your chance. Turn her back." Yugi whispered as he tried to calm Chell down. Atem stayed staring at the dragon. "Atem…?"

"I can't do it," Atem said in a barely audible whisper.

"What do you mean?" Yugi said, trying to hide the worry in his voice.

"I... Back there… I didn't mean to make her physical." He was looking down at his hand as he opened and closed his fist. "Because I could not focus… it did this random act."

"I can see that Atem. I'm not blaming you-"

"I meant to do something much worse!" Atem nearly yelled. Closing his fist into a tight ball. "For a split second, I was… going to hurt you." This sent ice down Yugi's spine. He unconsciously moved Chell to the arm away from Atem. Putting himself between the pharaoh and his daughter. Atem noticed this but did nothing other than pull his arms close to his body.

"W-we can work this out later, now we have a…" Yugi couldn't finish his sentence. Atem had entirely pulled in on himself. He had almost done something against one of his biggest beliefs, one of his fundamental truths. No harm must come to Yugi Muto. The shadows were using this sudden weakness to mentally attack him with everything they had. It took all of Atem's remaining energy just to fight them off.

Yugi had never seen the proud spirit like this. It was like seeing a parent crying for the first time. Atem had always been the rock of the two. Eventually, Yugi sighed, remembering what he had promised himself on the airplane.

"Ok… You go back to the car and breath… I'll figure this out." Yugi said. Only the barest of Atem's mental functions had heard what Yugi said. Atem robotically turned and headed to the car. "My turn to be the strong one," Yugi said to himself as he walked up to Gandora.

There were many people around, frozen in shock and fear as they gasped at the dragon. She clearly wasn't a hologram. Those that were old enough were having flashbacks to the destruction caused when Dartz released an army of duel monsters onto the world. One such person had their duel disk out. As Yugi walked past the man he grabbed the duel disk promising to give it back. The man didn't even notice. Then, with a baby still in one arm, Yugi threw on the duel disk and stood in front of the towering dragon.

"Gandora! It's time for you to stop! Leave Mr. Burger alone!" Yugi yelled up to the beast. Gandora blinked and looked down.

She had forgotten how small her master was until now. With one flick of the tail, she could probably send him flying, but she would never do that. He was her tiny soft hatchling. He had gotten very sad back by the house and she was going to fix that the best way she knew how. By destroying this monster in front of her.

"Gandora!" Yugi yelled. Gandora didn't even acknowledge him this time. Instead, she started to rip into this massive Hungry Burger monster. It's smiling face and outstretched gloved hands were taunting her.

Sirens sounded behind Yugi. Sector Security streamed into the parking lot and started to surround the place.

"Move, Move, Move! Get the civilians out of here! Officer Trudge! What are doing just standing around? Find out what's going on!" Yugi turned to see Sector Security moving the frozen people safely away and creating a barricade. One officer stood out to Yugi as he ran up to him.

"Tetsu?" Yugi gasped.

"We have to stop meeting like this!" The officer said. "What is going on Yugi?!"

"My Gandora hologram had gone crazy! Somehow she's moving on her own!" Yugi quickly made up. What was worse was that the red orbs on Gandora's body were starting to glow. Yugi knew what that signaled and it made his heart stop.

"She's reaching her End Phase! Get those people away from here!" Yugi yelled. He was about to try and summon a monster when a voice pulled him back towards the crowd.

"Yugi!" Yugi looked to see Rebecca and AJ standing just behind the barricade.

"Guys!" Yugi yelped. He quickly ran over and handed Chell to Rebecca. "Get as far away from here as you can! Gandora's about to blow!"

"We aren't leaving you!"

"Oh yes, you are! You have to-" an explosion covered the parking lot, but not from Gandora. Instead, everything was covered in thick darkness. Most couldn't even see their hands in front of their faces. Everything went quiet, even Gandora stopped. Then, two figures moved towards the diner. Somehow, Yugi was able to make out the figures even though no one else could. It was Atem with the Eye of Wdjat glowing once again on his forehead and a brown-haired man beside him.

"You…" Yugi gasped as he stumbled over to the two. Jaden rubbed the back of his head and smiled. Atem had no expression.

"Long time no see Mr. Muto. Thought I'd come and help with your duel spirit problem." Jaden smiled. Yugi acknowledged Jaden but most of his attention was on Atem.

"What…? How?" Yugi stuttered. Atem simply shrugged and looked to Jaden to explain.

"Ok, so funny story..." Jaden began

* * *

Jaden had no idea where this dragon was flying to but boy, was she racing to get there. He could tell, thanks to the magic sight his two-colored eyes had, that this dragon was confused and couldn't quite control her own movements yet. As he raced after the dragon, a familiar duel spirit manifested beside Winged Kuriboh's spirit. The spirit Yubel rarely appeared when Jaden was not in immediate danger. She was somewhat human-like with large bat wings and three eyes, two of which were blue and orange, the eyes Jaden gained when he needed to see magic. She and Jaden had been spiritually fused for years now and she was comfortable letting him live his own life. Only ever interfering when he needed her magic sight or help with a villain.

"Be careful, the Gandora species is one of the most violent groups of duel monsters out there. Any land they decided to call home quickly becomes unlivable." Yubel cautioned.

"Thanks for the heads up. My question is just why does this one have a body all the sudden? If what you said is true then I don't think this is the type of duel spirit to trick a person into bringing her into the human world." Jaden said.

"You're right, yet I can tell that she was summoned here by shadow magic. Meaning that this dragon was either in the wrong place at the wrong time, or she was purposefully summoned by her human partner."

"If this dragon is partners with who I think she's partners with, then something is very wrong." Suddenly the dragon dived towards the ground, out of sight of Jaden and his duel spirits. He put on an extra burst of speed as he ran through many city blocks until he caught up to the dragon.

"…Maybe it was a bad idea… to run after a flying dragon...instead of calling...a cab." Jaden panted as the group finally turned the corner. He looked up to see a whole crowd of people gawking in awe and shock as the dragon ripped apart the giant burger on the diner's roof.

"I believe she is trying to hunt for food. It'll be hard to convince her to stop. Gandoras aren't known for listening to reason." Yubel sighed. Jaden looked around, trying to find that famous spiky hair. Eventually, he saw it peeking out from behind a minivan parked on the outskirts of the crowd.

"Hey, Yugi! It's been a while since I've seen you, old friend!" Jaden yelled as he ran around the van. "You sure have gotten… tanner… and shrunk…and…you're not Yugi." Jaden said as he fully saw Atem leaning against the van. All three, Jaden, Yubel, and Winged Kuriboh tilted their heads as they looked at the teen. He was staring forward, his whole body quivering. A dark force seemed to radiate from the boy. Nothing like the Gentle Darkness that Jaden controlled, this was evil. Every time Yubel tried to focus on this power with her sight it would change in shape. First, it was lizard-like, then hummingbird-like, then condor in shape. It never stopped changing. The entire time this boy kept blankly staring like he hadn't even noticed the crowd.

Jaden stepped forward.

"I don't think that's the best idea-!" Yubel started but was cut off by Jaden abruptly slapping the teen across the cheek.

"What was that for?!" Yubel yelped. Even Jaden seemed shocked in his own actions. He kept staring at his shaking hand.

"I-I didn't do that. That was the Supreme Ki…" Jaden couldn't force the name out of his mouth. He thought he had gotten control of that entity years ago.

"Ouch." The group immediately looked down to the teen groaning on the floor. Atem rubbed his face and slowly got up, Jaden making sure to help him to his feet. "Where am I?" Atem groaned. The last thing he remembered was being in the yard with Yugi.

"Sorry there, pal. I don't know what came over me, but at least it seemed to wake you up?" Jaden tried, not quite having gotten over his actions himself. Yubel couldn't help but nod, though Jaden's action was harsh it did seem to get rid of the mounting shadows over the teen.

"I know you." Atem began as he looked over Jaden and the duel spirits beside him. "You are the kid that Yugi thought could be the next King of Games. I remember battling you when Yugi and I…" Atem managed to wake up enough to stop himself from saying when Yugi and I shared a body. Jaden gave an embarrassed laugh as he rubbed the back of his head.

"Really? Wow, I didn't know Yugi had that much faith in me. I've officially dueled him for that title twice now and haven't won it yet, but hey, third time's the charm." He then shook his head to help get himself back on the subject. "That's not important now! Are you ok? I really am sorry." Atem felt his cheek then looked around. Immediately, all his memories came flooding back when he saw Gandora attacking.

"Yugi!" Atem shouted as he looked over the crowd to see his partner standing in front of Gandora. "Her orbs are glowing! She's about to explode!" This immediately got Jaden's attention too.

"If we can get close, we can use our power to briefly control her. Then maybe we can send her safely back to the duel monsters world." Yubel quickly said.

"How are we going to get past that crowd in time?!" Jaden gasped. He suddenly felt very tired and it wasn't from the running.

Atem looked down at his hands, he felt different. This last hour seemed like a haze but now everything was, clear. He could still feel the ability to use shadow magic and the shadows that came with it, but he wasn't getting it from the Immortals anymore. This new darkness felt, kinder if a force of nature could have a personality. Atem, however, didn't have a chance to think long on this. He knew what he had to do if Yugi was not to be harmed. The Eye of Wdjat once again appeared on Atem's forehead but this time he was in complete control.

* * *

"So, this kid just explodes with darkness. While it shocked me, it seemed to freeze everyone in place. Hopefully, it stopped Gandora too." Jaden finished. Yugi kept his eyes on Atem.

"And, you're ok Atem?" Yugi asked as he bent down to look him in the eyes. Atem nodded and gave a confident smile, the first one in a long time.

"Is Gandora this way?" Yubel cut in, wanting to get everyone moving. Yugi turned back to her and nodded. Eventually, the group found themselves in front of Burger World. The people inside the diner were just as enshrouded in darkness as the people outside. Gandora was now on top of the building flicking her tail annoyedly. The darkness had stopped her attacks and explosion.

"Hey there Gandora! Remember me?" Jaden yelled up. Gandora peered down through the dark fog. She immediately recognized the enemy. He had nearly beaten her and her duel comrades twice before with his "hero" monsters. She growled a low throaty growl and her tail picked up speed. "Oh, you remember me a little too well." Jaden nervously laughed.

"Use the Gentle Darkness, it's the only way we can get this done quickly," Yubel said.

"I'm on it," Jaden said but he had been trying to access the power for a while now. There was a wall stopping him, a wall he hadn't felt for a long time.

"What's wrong?" Yugi asked when he noticed Jaden starting to sweat.

"Err, this is a little embarrassing... How do I explain this?" Jaden stammered. It was then Yubel's many eyes widened.

"The Supreme King is stopping you." She gasped in horror. Atem perked up at the name. He recognized it, the Supreme King had been the name of the paradise leader of the Duel Monsters afterlife until a few years ago, when he suddenly left his post.

"The Supreme who?" Yugi asked. Jaden looked to Yubel. She thought for a while, giving both Yugi and Atem an intense stare. She then nodded.

"They'll understand," Yubel said, Winged Kuriboh echoing this by wiggling his tiny limbs. Jaden dipped his head to his friends then turned to the two Mutos.

"You're right, Yugi's been friends with all of us for a while now. If he was going to run, he would have done it a long time ago." Jaden laughed, more to comfort himself then make a joke.

"Ok, thousands of years ago the Supreme King was the first holder of a power called the Gentle Darkness. The Gentle Darkness is a dark force that helps balance out the universe. It makes sure the forces of light are never too strong or intense ya know? It's passed from generation to generation and it's the power I currently host." Jaden quickly added.

"Many years ago, the Supreme King almost took full control of my body when I was traveling across the spirit world, another long story. Just know that in the end, I got full control of him and the Gentle Darkness. Now, this is where things get confusing. The Supreme King is still with me, meaning he is simultaneously my ancestor and the darker side of my personality." Jaden said, bracing for the skeptical looks the two were about to give him. Yugi and Atem turned at each other, then back to Jaden.

"Trust us, you are explaining this to two of the few people on earth that will understand exactly what you are going through," Yugi said with a comforting smile.

"Really?" Jaden said in surprise. "Well then maybe you can help me? The Supreme King has never done or thought different from me in all the years since his attempted possession. However, with him suddenly slapping random people and locking me out of the Gentle Darkness I have no idea what is causing him to differ from me." Yubel looked just as worried with even Winged Kuriboh flitting around erratically. Yugi looked to Atem for any information but the teen could only shrug. He had not known the king well. Only that he had found his paradise and became a paradise leader despite being more of a warlord than a king. His rulings were always too harsh for Atem's liking.

Gandora finally got bored of this chatter amongst the soft beings. She wasn't going to be able to do anything with all this darkness around so she got into a crouched position and flicked her wings open. Jaden had been the one talking about controlling darkness so she reasoned he must be the reason for this sudden night. Winged Kuriboh suddenly started squeaking loudly. Everyone turned just in time to see Gandora springing towards Jaden. She was expecting him to summon one of his powerful heroes so she was not holding back. Jaden had no time for such a summons.

"Watch out!" Yugi yelled. Just as Gandora's claws were about to wrap around and crush Jaden, they phased right through him. In fact, her entire body went through Jaden. Gandora went sliding along the ground, passing through many other people. She started at her claws to see she was once again translucent.

"What?" Atem breathed, he then looked to Yugi. The Eye of Wdjat was glowing brightly on his forehead. Yugi blinked in surprise then quickly felt his head. The eye disappeared before he could touch it, but the warmth stayed.

"Did I just-?!" Before Yugi could finish his scream, Jaden pitched forward and fell to the ground. Yubel tried to catch him but not having a body of her own she could do nothing. Jaden crashed to the ground with a painful thud. The two Mutos quickly ran to Jaden's side, ignoring the ever confused Gandora. Atem no longer focused on the surrounding fog and it slowly started to dissipate around the group.

"What just happened?" Yugi tentatively asked as he laid Jaden on his back. Atem had a million thoughts in his head but he couldn't form any into words.

"You just used shadow magic, you moron." Growled a voice. It came from Jaden yet it didn't sound quite like him. His eyes opened but they were no longer orange and blue. Now they were almost yellow with an intensity to them that the kind Jaden never had.

"Supreme King." Atem flatly greeted. Yugi's eyes widened as the king stood up.

"Pharaoh Atem, and I believe this is your host?" Supreme King returned in just as flat of a tone. Yugi quickly got to his feet followed by Atem.

"What are you doing here?!" Yubel demanded, getting right in the Supreme King's face. Winged Kuriboh made sure his own thoughts were heard too with wild squeaking and wing flapping.

"Blame these two. Why do you think I locked away the Gentle Darkness all the sudden? Our mortal body couldn't give away much more. Those two's haphazardly use of shadow magic nearly killed us both." The king growled as he crossed his arms.

"We did?" Yugi asked, still not sure of his own use of magic.

"Yes, you two were just now getting the power for that magic from the Gentle Darkness. That would be fine if we were some great universal force without a body to lose, but as you can tell we are still quite mortal."

"Wait, didn't you just give a bit of the power to Atem a minute ago?!" Yubel barked. Atem rubbed the cheek that was slapped.

"Sure, I gave a bit of the Gentle Darkness to him so he could fight off the Earthbound Immortals' influence but that was not an invitation to continue using the power."

"The Earthbound Immortals' influence!" Yugi quickly turned to Atem.

"Do not worry, they will not try to control him like that again. It was an easy fix. I am surprised you did not think of it yourself Pharaoh. Leaving your mind be open like that was a rookie mistake." The king continued. Atem once again tried to reach up and grab the millennium puzzle around his neck that wasn't there. He quickly caught his unconscious action and stopped his hand.

"It's been a while since I've had to fight off mental attacks," Atem answered.

"Obviously, now my next question. What are you even here?! You are supposed to be dead! You have a whole kingdom to rule in the afterlife." Yugi's eyebrow raised at the afterlife once again being able to be mentioned. First Atem, then this man. He couldn't focus on that now however as the king continued. "I even trusted you with my part when I had to leave to help push this boy in the right direction."

"You call possessing someone a push in the right direction?" Atem commented. He stood straight with his arms crossed, the picture of the confident pharaoh.

"You used to do it almost every day to your host."

"Hey now!" Yugi cut in before this could turn into a fight. "Atem is doing all he can to get back to... that place. Also, once Atem and I finally talked to each other he never forcefully possessed me."

"He did?!" Everyone turned to see that the darkness had disappeared enough for a group of AJ, Rebecca, and Officer Tetsu Trudge to witness everything that was just said. They stood gawking at the group.

"…what did you just say…?" Trudge asked.

"…"

"…"

"Well, Jaden's part of the soul has healed. Have fun. " The Supreme King smiled. He then closed his eyes and when they opened again, they were brown in color.

"What happened?" Jaden groaned as he held his head. Yubel and Winged Kuriboh quickly went to his side. Yugi couldn't join though, his eyes were squarely fixed on his son's. It was silent for what seemed like an eternity as the darkness continued to dissipate, letting more people into the light. Slowly AJ opened his mouth, he took a deep breath.

"Aww, I wasn't even close! I mean, I knew something was up but I never guessed demon. I was thinking more time traveling alien. What was your guess Mom? Officer?" AJ asked as he noticed Trudge gulp.

"Are you… the one I met on top of the school roof all those years ago?" He asked, staring down Atem.

Atem had no idea what to do. There seemed to be no out, no way to explain this away. So, he simply nodded, making sure not to show anger or fear.

"Well… that explains a lot." and Trudge fainted.


	22. Too Much of a Coincidence

"We have to pay for nothing?!" Rebecca yelped in disbelief. Originally Yugi and Rebecca were worrying how they would pay for the damages caused by Gandora, then Trudge (After waking up and returning to his laughing squad a few hours ago) had come back to the group after with a slip of paper in his hand. They all were still at the diner, in the back of the diner to be exact. Sector Security had asked them to stay while they worked out the details of the disaster. The diner owner had been kind enough to give the group of the Mutos, Trudge, and Jaden some chairs and privacy.

"That's what it says, Sector Security is going to pay for everything. We don't have to worry about a penny." Yugi said.

"I don't trust that in the slightest," Yubel said, even though she knew more than half the people in the group couldn't hear her.

"Maybe they're just being nice?" Yugi tried. "By their point of view, we were the victims."

"Wait, you're not victims of a crazy hologram?" Trudge asked. Rebecca immediately slapped her hand over Yugi's mouth and laughed.

"Oh, don't listen to Yugi he's still in shock." She said. Yugi slowly shook his head and pulled her hand off.

"We promised we'd be honest and that's what Atem and I plan to do. Yes, Gandora's sudden body was our fault. It was a complete accident but nonetheless, it was our fault." Yugi said. Atem wanted to pipe in and say it was specifically his fault but he knew that would only lead to another disagreement with Yugi. That was the last thing he wanted now.

"No matter whose fault it was, I was told to give you that note and I've done that. It's not my job to point fingers about who caused this disaster." Trudge said curtly. Yugi and Atem sheepishly glanced at each other.

"A good thing did come from this, however." Rebecca pointed out.

"Yes, now we have a good reason to finally explain what has been going on and you are no longer constantly being bombarded by those shadows," Yugi said. Atem nodded then looked to Jaden. The man was sitting backward in his chair, leaning heavily on the metal chair's back. Jaden weakly smiled and gave Atem a thumbs up. He barely had the energy to sit up, but he knew when a thumbs up was required.

Right after Gandora returned to being a spirit, Atem and Yugi (after some quick coaching from Atem) did disconnect their use of the Gentle Darkness's power. Much to Atem's relief, the shadows that had been targeting him did not return. Even if they did, he would have been ready. He had over five thousand years of practice fighting them and now that he knew what they were, they would not influence him again.

"Sooo… how does Uncle possess you?" AJ cut into Atem's ponderings. "Is it more 'The Exorcist Archetype' type of takeover or 'The Close-Up Conjuring' kind?"

"You're too young to know those kinds of movies," Yugi warned.

"No, no, no! I haven't seen them in full. I just saw some videos on the internet about them." AJ quickly backtracked.

"Hmm, we'll talk about that later young man. I'm just surprised you're not…well, scared." Rebecca said as she gave a sidelong glance to Trudge who slightly quivered every time Atem so much as looked at him.

"Why would I be? Uncle's not evil. I managed to figure out that much." A.J said while crossing his arms. This made Atem sit back.

"Why would you think that? You've only known me for a little while." Atem asked.

"It was one of the first things I decided to figure out about you. My original idea was that you were so creepy to everyone because you were secretly evil. That's why I even asked you to help me learn Japanese. Bad people are usually bad teachers." AJ grinned. "This entire time I studied everything you did and other than the weird things you occasionally whispered in your sleep I found nothing bad."

Yugi gave Atem a little bump with his elbow. "Looks like you got the AJ seal of approval." Yugi smiled. Atem didn't know if he should feel flattered or creeped out by AJ's research into him.

"So, you're a good demon or something?" A.J asked.

"Yes! Are you good?" Trudge echoed. Yugi bowed his head as he thought how to word this. Eventually, he looked to Atem who nodded. It was time to come clean.

"This is very important. You must swear to never tell anyone else this. There are a few select others that know this and if you need proof, we can call them. But please, I beg you not to share this." Yugi said. AJ sat on the edge of his seat. He could feel everyone's eyes on him.

"…Why can't we share it?" He asked.

"This involves many people's lives and if this information got in the wrong hands… it would be bad," Yugi said. Rebecca who had this talk given to her before nodded and put an arm on AJ's shoulder.

"This is really important. I know you will want to tell others but you can't. We can't risk hurting people like your father or Uncle Atem." She said. AJ looked into his father's and then his uncle's eyes, his own orange eyes were wide.

"You could get hurt?" He asked. Yugi nodded. AJ looked down at the ground then pointed at Trudge and Jaden.

"Why do they get to know? We just met him, and Mr. Yuki's not the quiet type either!" AJ asked.

"You got me there, bud," Jaden said as he tried to sit up. "If you guys don't want me here, I can leave. I have enough friends with… good enough eyesight to guess what the deal is with you two." Jaden said as Yubel gave a wicked smile.

"No, it's fine Jaden. We trust you. And Trudge…This is not the first-time officer Trudge and I have met. He has the right to know." Atem said, trying to show he meant no harm by half-smiling at the officer. Trudge pulled farther away from the teen.

"This plea goes to you too Tetsu. Please, wait until the end to ask questions and… keep it a secret." Yugi begged. This man had every reason to be furious at Atem and Yugi right now. They honestly had no right to ask anything more of him.

The officer sat back while crossing his arms. He was silent for a minute. He then gave a curt nod. Yugi sighed in relief but Atem was more hesitant about Trudge's "agreement." Nonetheless, the two started their tale five thousand years ago in Egypt.

* * *

And ended the tale explaining how Gandora got a body. Atem still didn't explain how he got here, the sacrifice of his place in the afterlife was still something he couldn't quite talk about.

"So, I was right about the time travel part! Kind of!" AJ declared after the brothers had told their story.

"I suppose so." Yugi smiled. He then looked to the others to see if they had any questions. He was specifically looked to Trudge. The officer hadn't moved, hadn't even changed his facial expression. While he and Atem had explained everything, they could think to explain, there was one bit they skimmed over. They said that when Yugi first solved the puzzle Atem had awoken with no memories and nothing but the shadows to keep him company. The Spirit, as Atem referred to himself back then, had only known two things: that he liked games, and that he could use said games to protect Yugi. The rest of his thoughts were twisted and distorted in the winding passages of the Millennium Puzzle. The brothers had hoped this be enough explanation for Trudge and that they did not have to go into details in front of the others.

Trudge looked around at the group. Yugi's son was bouncing up and down in his chair, clearly excited to ask whatever questions he had. He then glanced at Yugi's wife than to the King of Games himself. He had certainly grown from the whimpering boy Trudge knew in high school. Then there was the figure beside him. This… creatures that had haunted his dreams. The thing that kept him in that mental hospital for so many years. No, this…this kid. No matter how many nights he had been kept awake by him, no matter how many other people he had hurt. This kid was a hero that had saved the world on multiple occasions and was most likely back to do it again. He had done much more than Trudge could even imagine doing in his life. His small insignificant life…

"Thank you for your time. I have to get back to the force." Trudge said with a bow.

"You're just going?" AJ asked, his question echoed by almost everyone in the room. Trudge didn't turn back to the group, only slightly turned his head.

"You have enough trouble. No need to have scum like me around. Good luck and thank you." Was all he said before walking out the back door. Right through the waiting Gandora outside.

"…That went well." Rebecca said. She only knew a little about what the first few months with the spirit Atem had been like, and she had no idea what happened to Trudge.

"I have so many questions! Like what was ancient Egypt like? What was my Dad's mind like? Does Seto really have Blue-Eyes jet plane?!" AJ yelled, making everyone jump.

"That's the kind of question I want answered! Is Yugi's mind filled with card games or more... interesting things?" Jaden chimed in, grinning evilly at Yugi. Yubel sighed but smiled. She disappeared back into the depths of their shared soul knowing Jaden was safe. Atem and Yugi answered almost all questions poised for the next hour. Eventually, another Sector Security guard came in and took some last statements. He then said the group was free to go.

"Finally! I know my classmates were expecting me to be late to our class reunion but not this late!" Jaden sighed as he looked out at the black night sky.

"We can drive you Jaden. It's the least we can do after all this."

"Nah it's fine. I'll just call Jesse or Chazz to come pick me up." That name immediately got AJ's attention.

"Oh, before you go! I got Chazz's autograph, do you mind If I get yours too Mr. Yuki? I have a super special card that…" AJ asked as he searched around in his pocket.

"Not at all little buddy. What's this special card?"

AJ started to get more frantic in his searching. "Oh no! I think I lost it!" He moaned. His head drooped as he turned out his pockets.

"Is it at home?" Rebecca asked.

"No, I haven't taken it out of these pants since yesterday. I must have left it at the construction site when we were rushing to leave." He sighed.

"Hey. If you give me another card, I can get Chazz to sign it. Heck, I can get a lot of great duelists to sign it at the reunion tonight." Jaden said trying to comfort the boy.

"I would like that, but that other card was special to me. We have to look for it." AJ said, looking up to his parents with big puppy-dog eyes. Yugi looked to Rebecca, she was always best to handle these kinds of situations since he caved too easily. She pinched the bridge of her nose and sighed.

"It's too late tonight. Tomorrow is the last full day the Ishtars are here. Do you really want to spend it asking volunteers to look around a construction site?" Rebecca asked. AJ shook his head in defeat. Rebecca kept looking at him then to her husband. "Oh, can those eyes get any bigger? Fine, we'll swing by the site later tomorrow. But now the others will be wondering where we are so let's get going."

"You're the best ever Mom!" AJ cheered as he hugged her. He then remembered Jaden's offer and quickly handed him another card to get signed. As AJ thanked Jaden and then started to ask Atem more questions, Rebecca stepped closer to Yugi.

"Can I see that note?" She whispered. Yugi pulled out the slip of paper that told them that all damages would be covered. "Huh, not signed." She said as she looked over the note. Then she flipped it around to see another note on the back. This was written in much cleaner script then the front.

"Think of this as a late present to my half-nephew, for all the birthdays I missed," Yugi whispered out loud. Rebecca shrugged. Yugi looked closer at the note then sighed. He put it in his back pocket and made sure to remind himself to find a safe place for this. He trusted people and hoped that this really was the blessing it seemed like. Contrary to popular belief, he wasn't that naive.

* * *

When the family got home the Ishtars where already there, looking just as tired as the Mutos.

"Things didn't go well for you either?" Rebecca asked.

"Nope, my business's reconstruction has been pushed back another year. More important thing to build apparently. Doesn't matter that I've been on the waiting list since the Zero Reverse destroyed it." Marik sighed as he continued swiping through his phone. His sister patted his shoulder and turned to the Mutos.

"What happened to you four?"

"Atem is the original Atem! And is the whole reason I have this stupid name! No offense Uncle."

"That kind of day huh?" Odion asked. Atem nodded and plopped into a seat next to Marik. He couldn't help but watch what Marik was flipping through.

"Looking at buildings?" Atem asked.

"Hmhm. I'm done waiting. If I can't get the building rebuilt. I'll just get a new location!" Marik growled. Everything was overpriced. Even small little apartments were being sold for thousands more than they were worth.

"It's just not a good time brother. There has been so little actually rebuilt compared to the need." Ishizu said.

"When will be a good time? I've been mooching off others for months now and I want to stop and actually live in this city." Marik said as he more rabidly flipped through buildings. A call suddenly sounded from his phone. Atem was nearly thrown back as Marik stood straight up and answered the call. He spoke so quickly that no one could understand him. He soon left the very confused room still speaking at rapid speeds.

"Ok… who wants some late dinner?" Rebecca asked.

As everyone separated to the nightly tasks, AJ sat down across the table from Atem.

"I've answered every question you've had AJ It is time for you to answer one of mine," Atem said.

"Ok, come at me."

"How in the world did you think I was a time-traveling alien?" Atem asked.

AJ giggled as he rubbed the back of his head. "Oh, well it's just, you didn't seem to understand the simplest of technology or lingo. I don't care how poor you supposedly were growing up, everyone knows that lol does not stand for 'little old lady'. It was obvious you were alien. Then I noticed that you and Dad talk like you have known each other since forever. Seriously he called you 'the original Atem'. Add on your almost identical voices, both past, and present. My guess became time travel using alien technology." AJ explained.

"Oh, was it really that obvious something was up?"

"Yep," AJ said with a cheeky grin.

"Hey Atem, could you help me?" Yugi asked from the kitchen.

"Yes?" Both boys asked, AJ with an overly innocent smile on his face. Yugi's pressed his lips together and narrowed his eyes.

"…Yami could you come over here."

"What?! Aw… when did he get such a cool nickname?!" AJ whined as Atem got up.

"I've been actually wondering that too. Not the nickname, but why did you name yourself that back during duelist kingdom? I thought you couldn't remember anything when you woke up." Rebecca asked. Atem stopped to think about the question.

"It was probably because I didn't want Yugi to know of my lack of memory yet, but I still wanted to become closer to him. Our relationship was... a bit rocky at the time." Atem said, inwardly flinching as he remembered young Yugi yelling how he was afraid of the spirit. "I honestly just pulled the coolest word I could find in Yugi's vocabulary. I have no idea how Marik knew that name during Battle City. Maybe he used his Millennium Rod to find out?" Atem shrugged.

"I admit, I will always connect that name to you. I'm sure you noticed me accidentally use it a few times when emotions were high. Don't worry, I'm trying to stop." Yugi said.

"I… do not mind you using it. It will certainly help with this issue." Atem said as pointed a thumb back to AJ

"Oh, it's fine Atem. I know your real name means a lot to you. You forget I was there as you fretting about it for four years. I just have to get used to it." Yugi smiled. Atem continued to help in the kitchen (while staying away from the 3D printer) but remained quiet. His name, it had been given to him by his beloved father and was what all his friends and family back in Egypt knew him as. It was important to him, but why then did he feel so much happier when he was referred to by his nickname?

"Amazing news!" Marik screamed as he burst into the kitchen. "I have a building!"

"Really?!" Everyone gasped.

"Yep! Thank the gods for Bakura. The high school principal is selling a still standing building in a great location! She said she would sell it to me because I'm Bakura's boyfriend! Amazingly cheap too. I just sealed the deal." Marik proudly crossed his arms.

"Have you seen it yet?" Ishizu asked.

"Nope. But that's what we are doing tomorrow."

* * *

"So… this is it?" Odion said as the group of the Mutos, Ishtars, Joey, Téa, and Bakura stood outside a two-story rundown building. It took a lot of damage in the Zero Reverse, it was riddled with huge holes and had no roof. Everyone turned to Marik, he had already paid for this and no one was sure of his reaction.

"It's-it's… Just as beautiful as the pictures." Marik gasped. His siblings glanced to each other in worry.

"Beautiful?"

"Well not yet! But I own it and it's not on some waiting list. When I fix it up, it will be amazing. I'm sure to get a lot of business from the duel stadium over there with turbo dueling, plus the traffic from the Satellite once that bridge down a couple of blocks is finished being built!" Marik smiled as he pointed to the varies locations. When AJ saw the construction site for the bridge he pulled on his mother's sleeve.

"We'll get there AJ, be patient," Rebecca whispered to her son. She had Chell's carrier in one arm and AJ's hand in another.

"You're not coming back to Egypt with us, are you?" Ishizu asked. Marik shook his head.

"Thank you for having me all those months but now it's time for me to be on my own again." He said.

"Where are you going to live? I hope not here." Téa asked.

"Oh, uh. I was kind of planning to. I've lived in worse, plus I have tons of good camping equipment. I'll be just as good as a house." Everyone looked to each other, then to Marik.

"No." Everyone almost said at once. Marik stepped back in surprise at the resounding answer.

"We are not lettin' a friend go homeless while we all have good houses," Joey said.

Atem and Yugi glanced to Joey. While he was better than that day in the construction site he still didn't seem quite right. All his smiles seemed fake and it looked like he hadn't gotten a good night sleep in quite a while. Atem could relate thanks to his nights of fitful sleep. He could still never remember his dreams but he always woke up sweating.

"...We can talk about my living conditions later. First, let's take a look inside this place." Marik said. Most of the group then processed to put on dust masks, everyone but Rebecca and the kids, though AJ tried.

"No, you don't. I don't want any of you young ones in the building." She said. "That means you too Atem." Atem stopped putting on his mask and immediately turned to Yugi. Yugi sighed and took the mask from his hands.

"Sorry, Atem. It's too dangerous for a teenager." Atem gritted his teeth but said nothing. He strode back over to Rebecca.

"I know you could probably deal with whatever was in here Atem, but we just want to be safe. Besides, we need you to describe where you had that battle with Chazz to the workers at the construction site so they can get AJ's card." Yugi tried. Atem simple nodded and then followed Rebecca and AJ down the street. Yugi watched them go and sighed.

"I know he doesn't like bein' called a teenager, but the more we call his dat, the more he acts like one." Joey joked.

"I wish. I just want him to relax and know that we are not in any danger. He was so close too, but thanks to these Earthbound Immortals and that incident yesterday I feel like we are going to have Pharaoh Atem for a long time." Yugi exhaled. Joey looked to the others. They had everything explained to them that was found out yesterday.

"Don't worry. We are all goin' to work together to help Atem with dese… what was it? Earthen, no dat's not right... Mother 3 Immortals. Why does he need information on dem again?" Joey asked as they walked into the building.

"They are the Earth-bound-Immortals, and probably to defeat them. He couldn't say exactly why, but information on them will somehow let him get back to the afterlife." Yugi said.

"Oh…"

"Hmhm. We have to help kill him again." Yugi breathed as he put on his mask. Joey put an arm on Yugi's shoulder and pulled him into a quick side hug. Even if his smiles seemed forced, they were just as wide and kind as ever. It still made Yugi feel better.

* * *

The group worked through the place for a good hour, it was actually much better inside than outside. The walls were sturdy and other than the obvious holes, most of its flaws could be fixed without a big construction team.

"Hey guys, look at this!" Everyone turned to see Bakura crowbar off some boards to reveal another room.

"Whoa, do you think this is some secret room?" Marik asked.

"Not very secret, look at all this stuff," Téa said as she gestured to all the papers and food scraps littering the room.

"Someone much have squatted here for a while," Odion said as he picked up a newspaper clipping. There was a small hole in the back of the room, probably how the squatter got in here. Yugi looked at all the newspapers that littered the place. The floor and walls were covered in them. Most were damaged and unreadable at this point, but a few were still legible. Even more, had extra marks on them in red ink.

"Hey, this article was about the Continuous Bomber," Joey said as he looked at the paper Odion picked up.

"Who?" Ishizu asked.

"The Continuous Bomber, he was a bomber that would call the police ahead of time and make them play a game to decide if his bombs went off," Yugi explained as he looked closer at the other papers.

"He was an amazing date wrecker, thankfully the spirit Atem was there to play a real game with him. He died in jail, right?" Téa asked.

"I wouldn't know. I only ever saw the guy's red hat. I never caught his actual name. I wouldn't recognize it if I saw it in an obituary." Yugi said. As Yugi studied the papers closer his heart stopped. They all had to do with various criminals or new mental patients admitted twenty-one years ago, specifically in a seven-month span. The time when the spirit Atem as at his most violent.

"Let's get out of this room guys. I'm getting the creeps from it." Yugi said. A ping went off on Téa's phone. She pulled it out and gasped.

"By Slifer's double jaws, it's Miho. I haven't heard from her since that runway show five years ago. I was a celebrity judge and she was one of the models." She quickly explained to the confused Ishtars, then swiped to the text. Her brows furrowed as she read. Joey, Bakura, and Yugi all crowded around Téa to read the text. All the boys had lost touch with their blue-haired friend after freshman year thanks to her family moving to Australia. She was the only other living person that wasn't here in New Domino that knew Yugi had another spirit within him.

* * *

Miho know this is sudden but you have 2 listen 2 me! Something v bad is happening! : (

What are you talking about?

U know how Miho's dating a few boys? Well 1 of them just got a absolutely awful text! 1: he was all sweating and not d hot kind of sweating 2: he started pacing d room. He almost ran over little Snuffles! Can U believe d nerve?

Miho please, the text?

OH right. Anyway, he lived n Domino city when we were there and was put n a mental institute 4 something for involving a dragon block? Well some1 apparently contacted him and many others from d same institute about Yugi! Most of d others have already called the police but some r going along with it. Miho doesn't like what she's hearing.

Text clearer Miho. What do you mean?

Here I have some officer n your area's number that wants to talk to you. We been all group chatting all day tryn to figure this out

* * *

Yugi immediately turned towards the construction site. Rebecca was with the kids and she was smart. She wouldn't let anything happen to them. He then realized he still had Rebecca's phone in his pocket, he had taken it so she could get Chell in her carrier and had forgotten to give it back.


	23. Victims

As the four walked along the shore to the construction site there was an awkward silence. It wasn't often Atem and Rebecca were together without Yugi. AJ and his well-honed observation skills immediately noticed this unsaid tension between his mother and his kind-of Uncle. He still couldn't think of a better title for Atem. Nonetheless, AJ couldn't stand the quiet, silence was boring.

"Um, nice ocean, right? You can almost see the Satellite!" AJ said as he pointed out to the sea.

"Really? I can't see a thing out there." Rebecca said as she shaded her eyes.

"I can see it," Atem said flatly. This ended the conversation and the group continued on. AJ knew things were desperate.

"Why did you have to be named Atem?" AJ blurted.

"Pardon?" Atem asked.

"Why did you have to be named that instead of something cooler. Because of you, I'm stuck with this two-syllable name too." AJ said. Atem looked at the boy incredulously.

"That was very rude AJ You know how your father and friends had worked to get that name. I think you need to apologize."

"No, no it is fine. I take no offense at all. I am starting to understand where he is coming from actually." Atem said. Rebecca raised an eyebrow but AJ understood.

"What, being called a teenager? I saw how Dad calling you that made you all grumpy. I don't know why since I can't wait until I am one. You get to do so much stuff like staying up after eight, watching R movies…" AJ continued listing off as Rebecca looked to Atem.

"Really?" Rebecca asked. Atem helplessly shook his head.

"He notices just a bit too much. Yes, I'm not a fan of being called a teenager. Why was it such a revelation to Yugi and the others about my age? My abilities have not changed. I fight the forces of evil, I should be able to walk into a rundown building."

"But that's the point. You shouldn't have to." Rebecca too blurted out. She immediately regretted saying anything.

"What do you mean?" Atem asked. Rebecca sighed and looked down at Chell's sleeping face.

"It's just… sixteen seems so young."

"I know I look young but I have led armies, fought off villains, and still kept a throne-"

"A sixteen-year-old should not have had to do that! You should have been checking out hot Egyptian babes and complaining about how your father doesn't understand you. Not be the unflinching backbone of a nation AND fight for the world's very existence on a nearly annual base."

"…I cannot see myself being the type of teenager you are thinking of. I was taught at a young age what my life would entail and I have dealt with it fine."

"It's not that… We just…how do I word this?" Rebecca stammered. "We just want to help. Help take some of that responsibility from you. Let down your crown and be a teenager for once. Let us help." Atem crossed his arms. It was only a day ago that he had heeded to those very words and the Earthbound Immortals nearly overwhelmed him and Yugi for it.

The silence continued.

Rebecca knew she was not the person to give that talk. She and Atem were not comfortable with each other yet. She even had to admit she still didn't quite trust the boy. Despite everyone's faith in him, despite knowing his backstory, in the very back of her mind, she still saw him as the monster that traded Yugi away. She hated that part of her and tried everything to get rid of it, but the feeling persisted.

"Sooo, did you two date at one time? Don't worry I understand since Dad and Atem were once one person." AJ asked. This made Atem stop and Rebecca nearly trip.

"What?! Where did you get that idea!?" Rebecca asked.

"When Uncle Joey is babysitting me, he sometimes thinks that I'm asleep when I'm really not. He watches these shows with overly dramatic women who backstab and hug each other all the time. In these shows when exes meet they are always super awkward and have long minutes of silence, then they break into yelling matches with lots of emotions."

"NO!" The two nearly yelled at the same time.

"Ok geez," AJ said as he rubbed his ear. "So, I'm guessing you two just hated each other at one point?"

"No, not anymore. Not ever I mean. Uh, hey look! The construction site!" Rebecca yelled as she pointed to a chained off gate. She and Atem happily ran to the gate and read the paper taped to it.

 _This project is closed for an indefinite amount of time. Please be patient._

"Aw, another bridge between the two parts of the city is closed before it's even built. I wonder what the reason was this time?" Rebecca said after reading the paper.

"Does that mean we can't go in?" AJ asked holding tighter to his Mom's hand.

"Sorry, looks like we can't."

"But...but that was the card great grandpa gave to me. His Blue-Eyes."

"You have that rare card signed in pen?!" Atem asked in horror.

"Well, it can't be used in battles anyways and I still take extra good care of it. I just think that if I have famous duelists sigh it, it's like they're putting their seal of approval on great grandpa." AJ answered with a sigh. Atem looked over the waist-high fence into the site. There seemed to be no one there.

"I'll get it," Atem said as he vaulted over the chain.

"Atem! Don't go running off." Rebecca pleaded.

"I'm a 'teenager' now, right? Trespassing is what I am supposed to do." Atem yelled back as he ran farther into the site. He wasn't sure if the card would still be there. If someone had found a Blue-Eyes White Dragon, no matter if it was ripped and written on, it would be long gone.

As Atem got far enough in for Rebecca and AJ disappeared from view the hairs on the back of his neck started to prickly. Atem immediately stopped, his intuition on these things had saved him many times before. He looked around, nothing but piles of unused material and the sea. He reached into his pocket, he had his cellphone if anything happened. He pulled it out and held it in his hand. He continued on more cautiously until he got to the hill that attacked half the Mutos the other day. Atem was about to look down a steep cliff beside the hill when a voice from behind made him jump.

"Are you looking for this?" Atem turned to see the diner owner leaning on a metal beam, holding the taped duel monster card. He was wearing a red hat and even uglier smile.

"Yes, can you please return it?" Atem asked, turning to face the man fully. While he kept his eyes squarely on the man, he held his phone closer to him. Ready to dial and run at the slightest hint of danger.

"Of course I will, but let's play a game first, shall we?" The man's grin spread inhumanly wide.

"A game?"

"Yes, just answer a few questions my friends and I pose." In a flash something sharp cut across Atem's waist and wrapped tightly around him. It managed to wrap around his entire body, binding his arms to his side. His phone fell out of his hand as the wire was pulled tighter, cutting through his jacket and through his skin. Atem tried to pull away but he was then yanked backward and onto the ground, barely a few inches from the nearly vertical fall.

"A yo-yo?!" Atem almost couldn't believe what had trapped him. His face was then forced to the ground by a large boot. Somehow two people had hidden just below Atem on the hill. The pharaoh was cursing himself for forgetting to check the most obvious spot.

"Who are you?!" Atem demanded, despite most of his mouth still being in the dirt.

"That's funny, that the question we want you to answer." Another more nasally voice said. The others walked past Atem and finally, the boot came off Atem's head. He sat up slowly, trying to get the strings around him off, but these weren't normal yo-yo strings. They were strong wires that painfully cut into him with every movement.

"Don't fight it, it's three against one and you don't have you 'shadow magic' this time." This made Atem snap his head up to look at his assailants. Atem's eyes widened as he looked over the group.

"You remember who we are now?" A man that wielded the yo-yo with light purple hair asked. Atem gritted his teeth but remained quiet.

"Oh, you don't remember us? We were just an aside in your heroic life. Maybe you should help remind him Hirutani?" The gray-haired man with the nasally voice sneered. The yo-yo wielder with a flick of his wrist tightened the wires around Atem. It dug into him more, cutting away little by little.

"I don't know you!" Atem gasped. Atem tried to reach for his phone but one of the men had kicked it away. With these men in front of him and behind being nothing but a steep hill that ended in sharped poles, Atem had nowhere to go. Even if he did run he wouldn't get far with these cutting wires.

"Yes, you do. Try thinking twenty-one years ago." Hirutani said as he tightened the wires again.

"I'm only sixteen! How would I remember twenty-one years ago?" Atem yelled. Hoping Rebecca had somehow heard him and was calling for help. Atem suddenly noticed a ticking coming beside him. He looked down at the yo-yo ball itself. It had the number five digitally displayed on it.

"Now we don't like lying, Atem. It's very rude and it could get you into some trouble." Said the still smiling diner owner. The number dropped to four and Atem knew he did not want to see what happened at zero.

"How do you know my name?"

"We are the ones asking questions here. Now let me correct your lie, you are over five-thousand years old. We also know that you can no longer use that shadow magic of yours without either hurting a friend or opening yourself up to an enemy." The smiling man continued. Atem's breath caught in his chest. He studied the group over again. How had they known that? The image of Trudge turning his back on the Mutos flashed through Atem's head. This thought made his anger boil and his teeth grit even more, but there was nothing he could do.

"I do know you." Atem conceded.

"Ah! Now we are getting somewhere. What do you remember about us?" Atem refused to humor these men anymore. He still glared at each one, making sure they knew he had not given up. The wires cut more.

"Cat got your tongue?" Asked the grey-haired man. "Don't worry I'll help. Yugi was once a friend of mine, one of my only friends actually. He was helping me get the girl of my dreams. Then you got in our way. You poisoned little Yugi's mind and turned him and my love against me. Then you placed a curse on me. I thought I was stuck in a tight dark space for years when it was only an hour! Do you know what it does to your mind when it thinks it can't move for years?! When people found me, I was a complete wreck! I almost lost the use of my legs!"

"Warashibe" Atem growled.

"Good, you're getting the hang of this game now." The diner owner laughed.

"How about me? I'm sure you recognize my yo-yo skills. You also manipulated my old childhood friend Joey into turning against me and his other old friends. All so that your little partner could keep him to himself. When we tried to snap Joey out of it, you broke most of the bones in my friends' bodies." Hirutani said. Atem hated these twisted retelling but he was in no place to argue so he simply nodded. His hand quietly searching for anything that might be able to cut these wires.

"You are Hirutani."

"Oh, that one was given to you by Warashibe, how about another one? Do you remember a purple haired doctor that you made dozens of spirits attack and torment?" The diner owner asked. Atem nodded

"Dr. Kekeru Goyu."

"Correct. Aren't we having fun? Now here's a really old one for you. Do you remember a teen who was really into watches-?"

"Shotaro Akaboshi! I get it, I made him see himself as the only thing he ever loved, entirely made of watches and clocks." The wires tightened again, making Atem gasp as the counter on the yo-yo went down.

"No talking when we are talking! But you are correct. Do you know what he went and did? He completely wrecked his house and all his expensive belongings, leaving his family in crippling debt. In a mental hospital he succeeded in cutting off one of his arms to 'get rid of the gears' I believe." After hearing that Atem's felt sick to his very core. Sure, these were evil men, he was completely sure of that, but did he really cause…? He could hardly remember those times.

"So, do you remember all us?"

"Everyone but you." Atem breathed. The counter went down again but Atem told the truth. Of all the men here, he did slightly remember Smiley as the manager of the diner and a bystander during the battle with Chazz but that was it.

"Oh, I'm disappointed in you Atem. Aren't you a riddle solver? You should be using the facts I've been giving so far." The man grinned. The pain was getting too great, Atem's thoughts were getting fuzzier with every passing moment.

"You are… you are someone I met over twenty-one year ago." Atem breathed.

"Yep, one of your many victims. Now, which one was I? There was a whole lot, some you did much worse things to than just the ones here. After you locked me away, I heard the ticking of an explosive around every corner, always just out of sight. Instead of using my constant fear to hold me back I used my constant adrenaline rush to break out of jail and gather any information on you. I found others like me and we worked together to get over the terror you instilled in us." The manager continued. "For a long time, I thought it was Yugi that had done all this, but it didn't make any sense for the innocent King of Games to have the power and presence you did. I gave up on my journey for many years. Then everything was spelled out for me yesterday night at my diner. When you thought you were alone I listened in. I had to. Since the duel you had at this very site, I knew it was you, and I knew we had to continue our game." The way he said those last few words made alarm bells go off in Atem's head.

"The Continuous Bomber?"

"Ding-ding-ding. You did it. Now for the final question. Do you have anything to say to defend yourself?" The bomber asked. Atem breath was coming out in ragged puffs, the world was beginning to spin in his eyes. Just then he felt something, a sharpened rock. He slowly hid the rock behind his back and started to try and cut away at the wire. He needed to distract them.

"Yes, was a monster. Anyone who unjustly hurt Yugi or felt my wrath-" The counter went down again. "-Even if it was life-shattering! I destroyed many lives, including yours. However, do not worry about the past, you should be worrying about that now. Because I will do much worse to all of you once I am free!" Atem declared using his best pharaoh voice, hoping to scare the group off or a least make them hesitate so he worked on these wires.

Crying suddenly sounded from a metal pile a few feet away. Atem slowly turned to see Rebecca, AJ and Chell surrounded by Dr. Kekeru Goyu and a one-armed Shotaro. Rebecca and AJ had tape covering their mouths but Atem could still see the fear and disgust in their eyes. Chell seemed to be only now waking up and that's where the crying came from.

"Oh, that baby has such perfect timing, doesn't she? I was just about to bring you guys out." The three were lead over to Atem. Atem's heart had already frozen over, he could only stare at the faces of Yugi's family.

"Go ahead take off that tape. I want to hear their thoughts of this little reunion." The tape was painfully removed but the two remained staring in silence, now with ajar mouths. "It seems your father and your uncle didn't quite tell the truth yesterday. I was quite sad to hear that we had all been left out of the narrative, I guess it was just a little too violent for young viewers." The bomber laughed and the other joined in.

"Come on kid, don't you want to go hug your uncle?" Shotaro laughed as he pushed AJ towards Atem. The ten-year-old immediately tried to run back to his mother's side.

"That's not my uncle." AJ barely whispered. It felt like the wires were then strangling Atem's soul.

"And that's your thoughts on the subject? How about you Mrs. Muto? From what I heard at the diner you were never a fan of Atem. It must feel good to know you were right. Atem hurts anyone who gets in his way. I believe this included Yugi at one time and by Atem's words, he'll happily do it again. You have anything to defend him?" The silence from Rebecca told Atem all he needed to know. This ripped apart the remains of his heart. His gaze dropped to the ground.

"Ok guys, let's wrap this up. Now Atem," The bomber said as he leaned down to get a better look at the yo-yo "I haven't made a homemade bomb in years, especially in this small of a case. Don't worry, if this works right it won't kill you. It will scar you beyond repair, just as you did to us. I wonder if there will be anyone to put you back together?"

"Wait!" All the 'victims' stopped and turned to Rebecca. Her face was glowing bright red. "You are the monsters here, not Atem." She defiantly yelled. "Sure, Atem has had many rocky areas that resulted in people hurt. But! He has spent his entire life fighting for us, all of us. He has sacrificed himself on multiple occasions and…" Rebecca looked to Atem, his entire body was slumped in defeat. She had seen this position once before. When she was yelling at him about the loss of Yugi's soul all those years ago.

"… he is an amazing friend. I cannot defend whatever has happened to you creeps, but I can't defend you hurting him like this either!" Rebecca, crying baby still in hand, stomped on the toe of the doctor and jumped up to headbutt Shotaro. The clock lover fell back and Goyu let go of Rebecca. She then turned and kneed the doctor in the groin, knocking him down for the count.

Before the others could stop her, engine roars ripped through the construction site. Everyone turned to see thirteen motorbikes speeding towards the group. In front of the group was Marik, Bakura, and Officer Trudge.

"Scatter!" Someone yelled and chaos spread throughout the large site. Atem had lost too much blood at this point to even register that Hirutani was no longer pulling his wires tight. It was actually AJ running up to him that got Atem's attention. The boy was trying to help get the wires out of him while sputtering something with tears in his eyes. Atem couldn't understand any of it. He slowly revealed the sharp rock to AJ

Atem's head lolled to the side as AJ took the rock and worked to get the yo-yo off of him. AJ eventually cut it off and threw the remains of the yo-yo behind him. Atem then noticed the yo-yo's counter, it was at zero.

In a quick movement, Atem wrapped himself around the boy just as the yo-yo exploded. It was a small explosion, despite that, the blast was still powerful enough to push the two tumbling down the hill. Atem could barely stay conscious but he knew one thing, no harm must come to this boy. The two abruptly stopped rolling when Atem blocked AJ from the sharpened pips at the bottom with his own body. AJ was already knocked out, sprawled across Atem's lap. Atem couldn't move, he could only look down at the boy and pray he was alive. He had to be alive.

A hand took Atem's. He barely glanced up to see Rebecca holding him close. It was the last thing he saw before the darkness consumed him again.


	24. There was No Place for Him

Atem was nothing. Not even existing in blackness, he was just nothing. He had been like this before, five thousand years of being nothing. He recognized it and loathed it. Being almost something in nothing, not even the whispers of the shadows to be by him, it was worse than before.

Then a force started pulling him. Pulling him towards, something. Away from the nothing. It pulled faster and stronger the closer he got. Then Atem abruptly and painfully stopped. The closest he could describe it as is being pushed continually into a brick wall by rushing water. He could not fight against the current and he could not get past the wall. He was drowning in nothing.

 _I will trade my place in paradise for his soul. My place in the afterlife if I have to. Yugi must return to the world of the living._

Atem's words echoed in the emptiness.

He was not alive and he could not return to the afterlife

He was stuck in a place worse than death

He hated it

He wanted out

There was no out

There was no place for him

There never was

Everything suddenly froze. Atem could see blackness, he could see. His other senses started to return to him. It felt like he could move. He couldn't go back to the wall and pushing, so he moved forward. A purple fog seemed to envelop everything. Through the fog, slowly, lights appeared below him. Green, orange, yellow, blue, indigo and violet all glowed around him.

 _Your mission's not done yet, is it? We can help._

The lights suddenly took shape. A lizard, a hummingbird, an ape, a giant, a killer whale, and finally a condor all surrounded Atem. In the back of his consciousness, he felt something, worried perhaps, but it was soon swept away by the elation at the fact he wasn't alone here.

 _We would like you to be in the world of the living too. In fact, one of us has sworn to get you there._

The violet condor flew above Atem. He felt peace with it there, it would take all his worries away while keeping the nothingness at bay. He started to feel more, air slightly moving past his face and distant sounds of footsteps.

 _Would you like to get away from the nothingness?_

 _Yes._

The condor came closer to him. Its name was Wiraqocha Rasca. It was starting to gently take more burdens from Atem. He would no longer have to worry about his mission, about what dark power was trying to take over, or his friends' safety. Wiraqocha Rasca would take care of all of it. Atem accepted this, he needed rest, over five thousand years of it.

The world was becoming clearer for the two. They would be alive again soon. Atem almost disappeared entirely behind the condor, then it tried to take something Atem could not let go of again. It tried to take his memories.

The minute Atem felt his memories leaving he fought. This surprised Wiraqocha Rasca since mortals usually did not have the strength to fight back after agreeing, especially someone in the pharaoh's situation. The other colored creatures tried to help but the two were too close to the living world for them to interfere. The great bird tried again, and again Atem pushed it away. Every time Atem fought he woke up a little more. He wanted to be something again, but not like this.

Atem clashed with Wiraqocha Rasca for a time. He was weak however, he had no power here, he was dead. Wiraqocha Rasca, no longer surprised by this mortal's weak movements fully encased him.

Atem tried his best to fight but he was being overpowered. He was losing everything he had fought so long for. His father's face was the first to disappear and become Wiraqocha Rasca's. Then his home in Egypt became the Bird's. One by one Atem fell deeper into the condor. He could no longer remember his friends, his journey with them, or even why he wanted to be alive. There was just one more thing it had to control. It had to own this human's name. There were two names this mortal remembered. Atem and Yami. He clung to them harder than anything else. It couldn't figure out which was the real name, each was just as important to this human as the other. It decided to try for both and this left an opening for the still fighting human. He desperately reached out and felt a familiar power, gentle darkness. He immediately took this power for his own.

Wiraqocha Rasca was thrown from the human soul. It looked back to see the Pharaoh Atem in all his glory. For the first time in five thousand years, it felt fear. Atem was the one to reach out this time, he attacked the condor and took back what was his. Atem wanted to finish this but then realized that the nothingness was starting to surround the two again. He did not have time to fully fight off the condor before he would be thrown back into nothing. He turned and struggled his way to the living world, every step of the way Wiraqocha Rasca fought him. This battle raged on for what seemed like an eternity, each overcoming the other for precious moments. Then finally-

"We have a heartbeat!" Atem tried to open his eyes but the light was too much for him. Then there was all the yelling and clanking of metal. Couldn't they let a man sleep? Something sharp was poked into Atem's arm and he got his wish.

When Atem came to, he was in a much quieter environment. He looked around to see white curtains and white sheets. He looked down to see white bandages wrapped around his arms and chest. He could not quite remember why, but he was quite happy to see pure white instead of bright color. His eyes were then drawn to the most vibrant thing in the room. Yugi's magenta and blonde hair stood out in the room like a light-beam at midnight. He was sleeping in a chair beside Atem's bed. It did not look comfortable. Atem tried to sit up but found his body did not have the strength for such a rigorous action. Atem flopped back in bed with an annoyed sigh.

His little movements made Yugi stir. Yugi yawned and stretched for a couple of seconds. He then noticed Atem's open eyes. His open white eyes. He gasped and sat straight up, making his sore back groan even more.

"You should really lie down Yugi. Sleeping while sitting at your age cannot be healthy." Atem croaked. Yugi's couldn't help but laugh as he looked at Atem's confident half-smirk. It took all his willpower not to bear hug Atem then and there. He instead reached over and took Atem's hand. He squeezed it tight.

"Welcome once again to the world of the living. You just can't seem to die, can you?" Atem nodded and squeezed Yugi's hand in return.

…

Téa ran through the hospital as quick as her legs could carry her. She was at the peak of health so that was lightning fast, but it wasn't enough for her. She skidded around a corner and nearly knocked over a nurse.

"Sorry!" She yelled back. She didn't stop, however. She soon found the room and threw open the door. Inside was Yugi and Atem casually playing cards on Atem's hospital bed. Atem couldn't quite sit up thanks to all the machinery connected to him so the cards were scattered across his chest and lap.

"Hey Téa, you sure got here fast. I only sent the message out to everyone ten minutes ago. I hope we didn't wake you. It was supposed to be a quick update, not a call for everyone to come immediately." Yugi said as he looked out at the black morning sky. It would be many hours before the sun rose.

Téa stayed in the doorway and stared at the two. These last two weeks Atem had been constantly on the verge of death and Yugi one heartbeat away from a breakdown. Yet, here these two were, playing cards like it was any other Monday. Téa shook her head and smiled.

"Don't worry, your text was clear about not needing to come right away. I just wasn't getting any sleep, so I thought I'd pop by." She said as she strode into the room. She stopped by Atem's bed and studied him, specifically his eyes. She breathed a sigh of relief when she saw that the whites of his eye were still exactly that, white. "You seem to be doing well Atem." The boy shrugged.

"I am doing horrible, Yugi is showing me that famous game of his and he is destroying me." Atem smiled.

"Uh-oh. You, losing at a game? You must be sick." Téa joked as she felt Atem's forehead.

"He's just being nice. For the first time he's ever played this game he's amazing at it. Same as ever." Yugi said as he ended his turn. As Atem played his turn Yugi's eyes quickly glanced to Téa, his face told her the question he had.

"I just checked. Jaden's still knocked out. Don't worry, I'm sure since Atem's now awake Jaden will come back to us at any moment." She whispered into his ear.

"What are you two being all secretive about?" Atem asked, not even looking up from his cards.

"Nothing important. I just want you to focus on relaxing and healing. You can catch up with the world later. By the way, do you need anything Atem?" Yugi asked. Atem shook his head and returned to the game. Yugi had asked that about every five minutes.

…

The Mutos were the next to make it to the hospital. The sun was just barely rising over the horizon when the three made their way to Atem's room.

"Ahh looks like Chell is a little tired this morning." Yugi cooed as he took the crying girl in his arms. She immediately stopped crying and held tighter to her father.

"Rebecca's tired too." Rebecca groaned as she rubbed her eyes. Yugi leaned over and kissed her on the forehead.

"You didn't have to come right away." Yugi said.

"Uh-huh." Rebecca moaned, unconvinced. "Now that Atem's awake you are going to need all the help you can get."

"We can take care of ourselves." Yugi said. Rebecca looked at the bags under Yugi's eyes and then to his extra frazzled hair.

"You misunderstand me, we're not here for Atem." Rebecca then gently pushed on her husband's chest. It was enough to get Yugi off balance and make him fall back into his chair. "We're here to take care of you, Honey." Yugi was too tired to think of any quick-witted response so he accepted his fate and leaned back in the chair. Téa chuckled at the scene.

"Atem and I have been trying to get him to slow down all morning." She smiled. Atem nodded but his attention was on something else at the moment. At the doorway, ever so slightly peeking in was the orange eyes of AJ. Atem could still vividly remember those terrified eyes at the construction site. He tried to turn to face the doorway but found that it involved a lot more IV fighting then he had expected.

"Please sit back Atem. I swear you're worse than Yugi when it comes to making you relax." Téa huffed as she made Atem lay back down. Atem did as commanded but he kept an eye on AJ, trying to smile non-threateningly at the boy.

AJ had been looking for a time to slip into the room for a while. He then saw Atem glare at him and he pulled away from the door with a squeak. This got Rebecca's attention.

"Hey now AJ It's ok to come in." She said in a soft, motherly voice. AJ once again poked his head around the corner. Atem's shoulder slumped as he watched the boy, it looked like AJ really feared him.

"It's ok AJ" Was all that Atem was able to say. The boy finally ran into the room and hid behind his mother. Atem frowned and fully laid back on his pillow. Once upon a time, he was fine being feared. Back then he saw himself as Yugi's darker side. The side that did the things that good little Yugi would not. Just look at where that attitude had got him, in a hospital room, with Yugi's family terrified of him.

Atem looked to Yugi. He was on the verge of falling asleep, too tired to even notice his son coming into the room. An old memory then resurfaced that Atem tried to rarely think about. Back at Duelist Kingdom after they had just lost to Seto. Yugi screams about being scared of the spirit rang through Atem's head. Atem inwardly cringed as he thought about how he had dealt with the loss and Yugi's fear. He had lashed out at the boy. The two had not quite figured out how to talk to each other at that point so the argument caused Yugi to space out. The two were stuck in a place between their mind and body. In that darkness, he had let Yugi know how they had just probably lost everything all because Yugi dared have mercy. Atem shook his head, he did not want to think about that time any longer. The only good thing about that fight was that it finally made Atem realize that he was indeed not a side of Yugi Muto and that he hated being feared by his friends.

"Uh, Uncle?" Atem nearly shot up when he heard AJ's voice. His body, of course, did not allow for such an action but the surprise was all the same. AJ was right beside the bed, his hair was the only thing Atem could see in his resting position.

"Yes?"

"I have something for you." AJ quivered. Slowly, the boy lifted up a card, Atem could see that the boy had decorated the card himself.

"A get-well card?" Atem asked as he read the front.

"AJ spent two days researching the most popular get-well-soon cards. I believe he combined them all to make that." Rebecca smiled. AJ stood on his tiptoes so he could better see Atem's reaction. Atem could not help but smile as he opened the card and a mound of glitter fell onto his chest with the taped Blue-Eyes White Dragon card. Trying to read the cluttered card was nearly impossible. Every part of the folded piece of paper was covered with something. Each an obvious, but painstaking recreation of some other card.

"Thank you very much. This was very kind of you." Atem smiled at the boy.

"Have you read the back yet?" AJ asked. Atem turned over the card to see a drawing of himself with tons of awards and duel cards around him, AJ even gave him a pharaoh's crown (even if it was from the wrong time period). Beside him was a drawing of what Atem guessed was AJ hugging him.

"Sorry? I know you're not evil?" Atem read above the picture. It was written in perfect Japanese.

"Ya… I just wanted…you know…I figured you out long before those guys and I know you're not evil… You're my uncle. Nothing changes that… Did that make sense?" AJ finally said. This caused a large smile to spread across Atem's face, he was at a loss for words again.

"…Thank you."

AJ grinned and ran back to his mother. Rebecca happily hugged her son then looked to Atem.

"He has been practicing that for the last two weeks. Most of that time was spent wedged into tight spaces. Be thankful for stage fright, the original speech was three hours long." she said.

Atem smiled then turned to see Yugi's reaction. He was sound asleep."He was tired."

"I don't blame him. Are you sure you two aren't still connected? He had as bad of a time these last few weeks as you had." Rebecca said as she threw a blanket over him. She then took Chell from Yugi. "It's time to feed her. Be right back. Stay resting Atem, if not for your own health then for Yugi's sake!" AJ followed her out the door.

Atem gripped the edges of his blanket. His memory was blurry at best, all he knew was that these two weeks had not been enjoyable.

"I really was that close to death?" Atem asked.

"Not just close, you went past it a few times." Téa answered. Atem turned to his heart monitor, its rhythmic beeps seemed to echo in the sterile room.

"I have not had a real heart in so many years. It is odd to think I almost lost it again." Atem said more to himself. Téa looked down at her feet for a moment, then took a deep breath and moved her chair closer to Atem.

"I'm sorry. We all are." She whispered. This made Atem's eyes widen.

"What for?"

"We…" She stopped. She looked like she was fighting a war within herself. Finally, she continued "I know you want to get back to your resting place…It's the reward you fought for, for so long and we absolutely want to help you get there it's just… Not like this… we couldn't let you die in front of us... This is different from the ceremonial duel, we couldn't in good conscience pull your plug without-" Atem cut her off with a hug. It was a weak hug but it did its job.

"You guys did the right thing. This wasn't the way," was all Atem said. This made Téa tear up and she pulled away to hide her tears.

…

The others slowly trickled in throughout the day. Joey was still a wreck just like the first day at the construction site, maybe even worse? Yet, he still smiled and made jokes like the old Joey. He waved away anyone's concerns about him and focused on Atem and Yugi. Bakura and Marik were next. The other Ishtars had already gone back to Egypt but they sent their support via video chat. They were all so grateful to see Atem awake. One thing, however, got Atem's attention. When each first saw him, they all immediately studied his eyes and seemed relieved with whatever they saw. The last straw came when a nurse asked one of them about the color of his eyes when she thought Atem could not hear her.

"What is so interesting about my eyes?" Atem finally asked after the nurse left. Everyone in the room froze. All their eyes flicked to Yugi. Atem could tell Yugi was concocting a way to dance around the question. Atem then noticed AJ. The boy was fidgeting. Atem knew he wanted to help any way he could and what better way to help then to share information?

"What happened to my eyes AJ?" Atem asked. AJ could not help but respond to a question someone asked him, especially if he knew the answer.

"Your eyes are fine now, but these last few weeks they weren't. In fact, most of your face wasn't fine." AJ blurted out. Yugi shook his head as Atem then looked to him with a raised eyebrow and impatiently tapping fingers. Yugi then reached over, picked up AJ and set him on his lap.

"We were hoping to let you heal a bit before telling you this. It really isn't something you have to worry about yet." Yugi tried. Atem kept his gaze on his brother.

"During the times you… a week into your coma…You…"

"You died." Bakura said the words the Yugi couldn't. Atem in surprise, reached up to his chest to grasp the nonexistent millennium puzzle.

"It was bad. I still remember Yugi's voice as he called us all. You had been declared dead. I came runnin' to the hospital as quick as I could. They let us say our goodbyes, but when we were doing dat... You let out the worst scream I ever heard." Joey said with a shiver.

"The lights started flashing and all over the hospital equipment was going crazy." Marik said. "It felt like you were using shadow magic, but on what we couldn't figure out." Atem tried to think back to his coma. He then remembered fighting, but what?

"I came into your room to see if I could maybe balance out your magic or calm you down." Yugi added while hugging AJ closer to him. "It was then I saw it. Your eyes were open, and the whites of your eyes were pitch black."

"You also had these weird red markings on you." AJ added.

"Not yet, those grew and disappeared over the coming week." Yugi almost whispered. "Just as suddenly as the first 'attack' started, it stopped. You were back to being in a coma, but alive. All the next week you would suddenly have these attacks. You would scream and then release all this shadow magic."

"I was worried during a few attacks that we'd all be sent to the Shadow Realm." Bakura said.

"The entire time you would occasionally grow these black eyes or weird red markings. Yesterday was the first day you didn't have an attack. Now you're awake with no physical signs of anything ever happening." Atem gulped as Yugi finished, hiding his worry behind his usual regal veil.

"Did I hurt anyone?" Atem asked.

"Not anyone in the hospital, but Jaden is here now too for 'acute and sudden fatigue'." Bakura said. "It doesn't take a shadow game expert to guess where you got your magic from." Atem couldn't hide his frown. He had used Jaden like a battery the last few days, and he didn't even remember doing so. Atem then looked towards the door out of his room.

"I wouldn't go over there. Yubel's still in a fit." Yugi said guessing Atem's idea. Atem was silent a moment, collecting his thoughts.

"I think those attacks were me fighting my way back to you guys. I don't remember what I was fighting, but the entire time I clung to the memory of you guys. I am truly sorry I scared you all." Atem said. This got him a noogie from Joey.

"You don't have to be sorry about a thing! I don't care if ya have to turn into Dogoran to come back to us. We will always drop everything to help ya." This made Atem slightly smile but Joey's wording in his last statement worried him.

"Anything else happen?" Atem asked.

"Nothin' supernatural in origin. All dose cu-punks dat attacked ya are going to jail for life and this time dey're not getting out on an insanity plea. You were very lucky dat so many of ya past enemies were sane and called the police as soon as dey heard dat awful plan. It might have taken us a lot longer to get the police without dem, especially without Trudge's help." Joey said.

'So, Trudge helped us.' Atem thought. It made him inwardly smile to know that his first victim wasn't bent on hurting him or his friends. It looked like many other weren't either.

"Anything else?"

"Err... Marik's now living with Bakura." Téa added.

"Just until I get my garage in a livable condition!" Marik quickly cut in. The look Bakura gave though made Atem think this was more permanent.

"Um, it's official that Yugi's retiring. Some of KaibaCorp's files that held the plans for Yugi's retirement tournament got leaked. We've all been swarmed with questions about it every time we go out into public, it even overshadowed your hospitalization." Bakura added.

"Oh, that'll be fun to deal with once you're healed. Most media outlets have cut back on their intrusions since you were in such bad condition. Once you're out it's going to be a madhouse." Yugi ruefully laughed.

"That is going to make things difficult." Atem sighed. He tried to think of how he was going to sneak into the libraries he was banned from with tons of people following him.

"That reminds me! During this last week, we all have been doing everything we can to find out more about these Earthbound Immortals and the Signers." Yugi said.

"Really?!...You guy didn't have to do that." Atem quickly added.

"Of course we did. We made a promise to help and we're keepin' it!" Joey said as he pulled out a piece of paper. On it was a short list.

"We've been scouring the internet and libraries. We've been even questioning Yugi." Téa added. Atem raised an eyebrow as he looked to Yugi.

"Remember when I suddenly had that epiphany back in the yard about the Earthbound Immortals and all that other stuff even though I had never heard them before?" Atem nodded. "Good, because I don't."

"It's weird, Yugi will suddenly know all this stuff and make large leaps in logic from small things we find. Then ten minutes later he won't remember a thing that he said. We have to write everything down immediately and remind him of it later." Marik said, pointing at Joey's list.

"It's a good thing you were the yard the first time I remembered, or else none of us would know what was going on." Yugi smiled.

"Well, we would know even less than we do now," Bakura added. Atem once again gave away no emotions. He simply nodded to Joey.

"So here is what we have so far. The People of the Stars have a God called the Dragon Star, dough, sometimes it's also called the Crimson Dragon. We haven't been able to tell the difference." Joey began as he read off the list. "Dis god helped lock away dese Earthbound Immortals along with five to six, it changes from telling to telling, humans and duel monster dragons. Dese humans are called Signers and dey wield the power to summon the Crimson Dragon. Once the Earthbound Immortals are locked away the Crimson Dragon can only let the Signers be reborn every five thousand years."

"And here's the problem. I was actually able to find an exact date of the last time these Earthbound Immortals resurfaced. They're early this time, about twenty years early." Rebecca said.

"Where did you find that piece of information?" Atem asked.

Rebecca pushed her glasses up the bridge of her nose. "Well, I definitely did not hack into Sector Security to get it. I would never do something illegal like that." She said with a sly smile as she glanced to AJ

"That's about the only new big information we've found. We have no idea if the Signers are here early too." Yugi said. Atem looked at them all. He tried to smile at them for their hard work but inside he could not help but frown. They didn't need to get involved in this.

"What about the Dark Signers? Do you know if they are appearing early?" Atem asked.

"The Dark what now?" Joey asked.

"The Dark Singers…" Yugi gasped.

"He's remembering something! Get a pen!" Téa yelled. Joey and Marik nearly flipped the side table between them in their speed to get into their bags. Bakura simply reached into his pocket and handed his pen to Joey.

"Thanks, now what about Dark Signers?" Joey asked as he prepared to write. Yugi's eyes widened as he studied Atem. He slowly picked up AJ and placed the boy behind Joey. He then walked to Atem's side with the same horrified expression on his face. His eyes searched every inch of Atem. Finally, he sighed.

"Sorry, Jaden." Yugi's hand shot up to Atem forehead and forced him back onto his pillow. Before Atem could blink, a glowing gold eye appeared on Yugi's forehead. A great force shot out of Yugi's palm. It did not hurt but it pushed Atem farther into his bed. His whole body went numb for a moment, then everything was back to normal.

"I hope I did that right," Yugi whispered to himself as he felt his forehead, the eye was gone.

"What the deck was that Yugi?!" Téa demanded.

"The Dark Signers are the Earthbound Immortals' counterparts to the Signers. They are the way the Immortals get into this world and the only way the Immortals can make them is by taking control of someone when they die." The room went silent. Atem heart nearly stopped when he remembered too what the Dark Signers were.

"…That is who I was fighting." Atem breathed.

"I not completely clear on what I just did to you Atem, but I'm pretty sure it was to check to see if you were a Dark Signer. You're not." Yugi said. Atem looked up to his old partner. He seemed to be radiating an almost supernatural strength. Not like Atem's pharaoh presence or dark aura, this was true strength. It reminded Atem of the Higher Ups if he was honest. No matter how much he disliked them now, he could never deny their power. In fact, was this their power? Yugi's quick healing, epiphanies, and control of high-level shadow magic. Was this directly from the Higher Ups?

"So, is that what the attacks this last week were?" Rebecca piped up. This seemed to snap Yugi back to reality. Fatigue once again shadowed his face, but his usual relaxed aura came back.

"I'm sorry, what?" He asked. Everyone groaned.

"Ok, we'll just add Dark Signers to the list of things to look for," Joey said as he wrote it down in his paper.

"And make a note not to die anytime soon. I don't know what the Dark Signers are, but they don't sound good. Especially if Atem had to fight off becoming one in such a violent way." Bakura added. Everyone nodded. This made Atem lean back down. Because the Immortals knew him, they would know his friends, all of them.

"Do you know anything else Atem? Anything would help us, help you." Téa asked. Atem looked over his group of friends. They really had grown up so much since he had last seen them. They had great lives long past when he left them. Yet, they were dropping everything to help him.

Atem looked into himself. Atem had all his spiritual barriers up, he had cut himself off from Jaden's Gentle Darkness, he had fought off whatever attacked him. He was as normal as he could get, but these people in front of him still had a chance at being normal. They were worried about him being a teenager but Atem wanted them to be ordinary adults. Adults didn't save the world from South American demons, they lived, worked, and made their lives happy. They didn't need this, yet he needed them. Once again, he was dragging them into his own problems.

"No. And thank you all. You do not understand how grateful I am for all of you." Atem said. He then laid on his side to signal he was getting tired.

"Ok guys, we can question him later. Let's let him rest for now." Yugi said. As he led the others out of the room Yugi looked back to Atem. The teen's face was unreadable, that told Yugi all he needed to know.

"We just want to help you Atem. If you remember anything or just want to talk but don't want to tell the whole group, you always have me. We did share a brain. There's nothing you can tell me that I'm not prepared for." Atem nodded to him but said nothing. Yugi sighed and closed the door.


	25. Violet Dreams

The Spirit stumbled back. He was in a dark place, not quite in the Millennium Puzzle and not quite in Yugi's body. He had been pushed here. Pushed here by of all people, Yugi. Never in all the months that he existed had Yugi ever fought him for control. If anything, it was he that would force Yugi's Spirit away. Into a deep slumber in the back of their soul. It was always for the boy's protection, but here?

"Yugi!" The Spirit heard the screams of Yugi's friends even in here. The Spirit slowly reached out, Yugi was in control and blocking him. The Spirit, with no other option other than going back to the winding passages of the Millennium Puzzle, connected himself to Yugi's senses.

The group was on top of Pegasus's castle, monster holograms long since disappeared. They were one attack away from winning, one attack.

"I'm scared of this Spirit inside me!" Yugi's voice shot through the darkness. Those words cut the Spirit more than any shadow magic and he didn't know why. He had been called much worse by the scum of Domino city and by even Kaiba. The Spirit knew what he did was not normal, not even good, yet knowing Yugi feared him…

"He showed you compassion. Which is more than you deserve!" Téa's voice came in next.

"He lost the game," Kaiba said evenly. This was the next blow to the Spirit. He had been defeated. They had just lost everything. His winning streak, his friend's safety, Grandpa's soul… No, he didn't fail, Yugi lost.

The Spirit pulled back from the outside world and waited. Sooner or later Yugi would come in here. However, there was another presence in this darkness. It was both the Spirit, angry and hurt, and Atem, saddened and ashamed. Atem was in a position he could hardly explain himself. He cringed as it watched himself go through the motions, reliving the feelings he remembered all too well. He was both acting out his old memory and watching it happen. Unable to change a thing.

Yugi's soul then appeared in the darkness. He was not quite in front of the Spirit, someone had to be in charge of the body. He was too scared of what the Spirit would do if he let go of that control. Yet, he knew he had to face the being inside him. Placing him a position similar to Atem's, being both here and outside, truly not existing in either.

"What have you done?" The Spirit breathed. His hurt and confusion had mixed and grown. He was livid. He hardly ever felt that particular emotion, especially at Yugi, but what else was there to feel right now? Atem winced and it made the Spirit feel worse.

"I-I… I couldn't watch him fall." Yugi stammered.

"He wouldn't have actually done it. Kaiba's too proud for that."

"But what if he did?!" The boy never yelled, it made both versions of the pharaoh hate themselves more. Yugi turned to face the Spirit. Nothing was truly physical here, it was only feelings, yet the Spirit could still feel Yugi's long dried tears.

"He wouldn't have! I was in complete control of the situation and if he tried-" The Spirit tried.

"No, you weren't! It's always like this! You play with people's lives like they're nothing more than game pieces. I just can't stand by anymore! These high-stakes games have to stop!"

Atem wanted to reach out and slap himself. They had just lost one game, Yugi was hurt, they had not lost anything yet, there was still time. Get yourself together and comfort the boy you swore to protect! Nothing changed. Atem had to watch this argument for many more agonizing minutes. The Spirit getting angrier with every one of Yugi's words

"We just lost everything!"

"Not yet! We still have my-…our friends!" The Spirit distanced himself from Yugi at those words. If he wasn't Yugi Muto then those weren't really his friends either. The Spirit headed back towards the puzzle. Yugi tried to reach out to his partner but his kind feelings were pushed away by darkness.

"These games have to stop but that doesn't mean I don't want you around. You're just as important to me as my friends or even Grandpa. Please, just talk to me!"

Atem sighed, they were finally past the worst part. Soon the two would notice Téa's duel with Mai. They would both see their friends still fighting for them. The Spirit would then disappear into the puzzle to think and when the two would meet again, they would be able to defeat Pegasus. After that, they would have a long chat and put down some ground rules. Then the Spirit would promise to never again…

Something is different. It was like a violet filter covered the memory.

"Stay away from me!" The Spirit screamed, using his power to push Yugi away from him. The boy was fearful, but this must have been the last straw for him. His emotions became determined and hard as stone.

Atem kept looking around for the outside duel to leak into this mind space but it was not coming.

"Fine, I'm going, just like you want… Just so you know, I'm not letting you get control of this body again. Maybe never again if we don't figure this out." Yugi said. This made the Spirit flare up. Suddenly the two were in-between the two doors to their soul rooms. Everything still had a violet tint to it.

"You're what?" The Spirit snapped.

"I can't let you take control again, I've seen too many people end up hurt. I now know how to fight you and I will every step of the way if I have to." Yugi said, his voice slightly quivering but remaining determined. The two's emotions were clashing like they were fighting their own duel. Atem knew this was different, yet he was also acting it out. He was still a part of the Spirit.

"Yugi…" The Spirit breathed. There was a hallway between the two rooms. Where it led could not be seen from the doorways. Yugi never adventured past the two doors but the Spirit once did. At the end of the hallway was a large door to a mind prison. It could only be opened from the outside and held nothing in it. Back then the Spirit had been fearful of the prison, dreading that it was made for him. He never so much as looked at it after finding it. Atem now knew what it was for, however. In was a backup plan put into the Millennium Puzzle by the ever-cautious Priest Seto. If the pharaoh's host ended up being unruly and got in the way of defeating Zorc, this prison was here to lock that host away until the pharaoh finished his mission.

Atem only thought on it for only a moment, it was enough for the Spirit to remember what it was. Yugi's form was suddenly pushed down the hall. Atem wanted to scream, yet he was the one pushing. He wanted to stop all this, yet he was the one that even remembered what the prison was for.

"What are you doing?!" Yugi yelped. The Spirit wasn't talking, he knew that this was for the best. He could save everyone, he just needed to be in complete control of this situation.

Atem had to stop this. He tried to reach out but every time he did he pushed Yugi further. He needed his shadow magic. It had to be worth it, he couldn't lock Yugi away.

No. He would never lock Yugi away. No matter how angry he was.

Everything stopped. Atem knew he would never do something like that, even at his darkest. This was not real.

"AH!" Atem sat straight up, or he almost did. He shot up so fast that he nearly pulled out his IVs. At the same time, a gloved hand pulled away from him. Atem groaned with a mixture of pain and dread and fell back. He was in a new room, he was no longer in intensive care. He then noticed the man beside him. He had never seen him before and he was not dressed as a doctor.

"I'm sorry. Did I wake you?" The man smiled warmly. He had long, nearly grey hair and grey eyes to match.

"…Who are you?" Atem asked while propping himself up so he could better distance himself from the stranger.

"Looks like I scared you. I apologize. I must seem like a creepy old man right now. I promise I mean no harm, so please don't stress yourself." He said. He seemed to have genuine worry as he looked at Atem's attempts to move. Atem kept his gaze locked on the intruder. His eyes quickly darted to the clock on the wall, then to the door. His instincts were on high alert thanks to his dream.

"It's not visiting hours, only family can come right now," Atem said. The man looked back at the clock and nodded.

"You are correct. I am family, your half-uncle to be precise." Atem's arm nearly slid out from under him in surprise.

"Rex Goodwin!? The Sector Security director?" Atem gasped. The man smiled.

"So, you do know me. Yes, I am Rena Goodwin's half-brother, though I admit I don't remember her. It was my older brother that knew her better." Goodwin said with a hint of sadness. Atem stayed on high alert, refusing to lay down.

"Why have you come?"

"To see my nephew of course. I've heard much about you from the many reports I get from my officers." Goodwin kept his easy smile. Atem tried to read his face but found nothing but good humor. Atem sighed.

"Yes, sorry about that. There are many rules in this new country that I was not aware of." Atem made up.

"I'm sure. Japan must be a change from, where was it again? You grew up in Egypt, right? I'm surprised, you're Japanese is very good, I can't even hear an accent on you." Atem looked away from Goodwin.

"I was raised in an orphanage that taught Japanese, ever heard of the Shadi Shin orphanage? It's run by a group of duelists."

"Ah, that would explain it." The two became quiet, the entire time Goodwin seemed to be carefully studying the boy, Atem did the same to Goodwin. Atem had felt this kind of atmosphere before. It felt like meeting a foreign leader.

"I am told you are very mature for a sixteen-year-old," Goodwin said. Atem hesitated but nodded. "Then I can talk to you like the adult you are. I am not a family man. I never plan to get married or to have children. As the Sector Security director, I have a bigger responsibility to the people of New Domino. As an extension of that, I don't plan on being in your life at all." Goodwin said bluntly. Atem stayed quite a few moments, studying Goodwin. This man seemed kind enough and he respected Atem enough to talk honestly with him. Then again, this was also the man that made it so hard to find any information on The People of the Stars. Atem knew he would have to tread carefully.

"I understand. I did not expect anything from you." Atem eventually said. "You have already done enough for me by paying for the damages from that wild hologram. I could not ask for more." This made Goodwin smile.

"Oh, you know about that? While I'm not going to be the doting uncle, I did feel like I had to help you somehow, for Rena's sake. Don't expect me to do it again, however." Goodwin looked once over Atem again, this time focusing on Atem's forehead. Atem quickly felt his forehead to make sure there was no glowing eye there, nothing. When he returned his gaze to Goodwin his face was harder, losing all its good nature.

"I came today for another reason other than just cutting ties. I came to warn you, I cannot show favoritism anymore. In the past, you've been able to get off from your crimes with light warnings, but I can't do that anymore." Goodwin said. Atem's back stiffened.

"Then maybe you can explain something to me? Why is trying to learn about the People of the Stars illegal all the sudden?" Atem asked, betraying no emotions other than what his calm exterior showed.

"It's not illegal to look up information, just the way you have been doing it is." Goodwin sighed.

"Really? Because what I was doing those times I was arrested was simply, reading a book in the library, asking professors for information, and searching the internet." Atem said. "It was security that told me it was stealing, assisting a criminal, and hacking."

It was silent for many moments. Each person trying to study and figure out the other. Atem was surprised, this was too much like his time as pharaoh. Both leaders showing off friendship and power while trying to look for a weakness to exploit. By Goodwin's actions, he had much practice in this too. It was Goodwin that spoke next.

"You're here at a bad time Atem. I can tell you're an intelligent, determined young man. If you had come a year earlier, I would have loved to have helped you study these people. In fact, it was even a pet project for my brother, but that's not what the destiny had planned." Atem noticed Goodwin gripped his left arm as he spoke.

"While most of the world has moved on, the Zero Reverse is still fresh in many survivors' minds. You may already know this, but it looks like the People of the Stars predicted the disaster. They have many other prophecies that have not come true or were outright false but people will be people. Get one thing right, and suddenly everything they say must be true. If you knew what else the People of the Stars predicted then you would understand why information on them have been locked away by their owners. It would cause a mass panic. It's my job as the head of Sector Security to protect the citizens of New Domino, even if it's from themselves. I will do anything for the people of this city. They are the chosen few after all." While Atem's face remained mostly unreadable he couldn't stop his confusion from showing through.

"I'm sorry, that concept might be a bit adult, even for you. Let me just get to the point. Know that everything I do is for the good of the people. Lately, though, people have been starting to think I am letting you get away with too much, and as director, I cannot allow that. You will be figuratively on your own for now on. So, I highly suggest you look for your information in a safer, more law-abiding way."

"How would you suggest I do that?" Atem asked crossing his arms. Goodwin couldn't help but chuckle a bit as he looked over the teen.

"I'm sure you'll be able to figure something out. Nonetheless, if you can't and cause more trouble, I might be forced to publicly pull away from your family to prove I show no favoritism. Meaning everything of mine cannot be connected with them, even my money."

There it was, the threat. No money and all that damage Gandora will have to be paid by Yugi and Rebecca, right as they are about to lose a big source of income with Yugi's retirement. Security might even become tougher on all of his friends. Atem knew the threat was coming, he had done this dance before too many times to not expect it. Here though, he had no cards up his sleeve to counter someone in as high as a position as Goodwin.

"I understand, if someone thought you cared for us, they might try to use that against you." Atem said. "You cannot have any weakness in the public eye." Goodwin's good-natured smile returned and it was like he had never gotten stern.

"You don't have to be that serious Atem. I do not hate your family, I simply will be treating them the same as everyone else." Goodwin smiled. "I can tell you're growing into a fine young citizen of New Domino. I don't know your plans but I do hope you stick around. You seem like a person that could even rival the King of Games. Or at least Seto Kaiba believes so." This made Atem snap his attention back to Goodwin.

"You know Kaiba?"

"Of course, our two companies work closely together to keep New Domino sane. Hardly a day goes by that I don't chat with him directly."

Atem simply nodded to him, he had no idea what to do with this information but he knew Goodwin wouldn't have said anything if it didn't give him some sort of advantage. Goodwin started to get up but stopped. He looked back over Atem but it was a different kind of searching. His face was more somber and his eyes stayed specifically on Atem's blonde bangs.

"Is there a problem?" Atem asked.

"I… I admit, I had many reasons for coming today. To meet you and… a purely selfish reason." Goodwin then reached out and gently held onto one of Atem's bangs. "My brother had blonde hair, similar to this color. I wonder if this color comes from my family or the Mutos. Some of your facial expressions were even like his." Goodwin then pulled away and shook his head. "I apologize, wandering thoughts of a mourning brother."

"Your brother is…?"

"Roman Goodwin, my older brother. He… did not make it through the Zero Reverse. Though I am a bit ashamed to say it, I came here hoping to find a bit of him in you. It was silly of me. You are the spitting image of Yugi, just like I had heard." Just then, two voices from the hallways drifted into the room.

"…You and Atem are like two sides of the same coin, one dark, one light. Fights are bound to come up. Don't worry honey, you two are always stronger together, he might not ever remember yelling at you…" Rebecca and Yugi came into the room with food and clothing in their arms. When Rebecca saw Goodwin, her nose crinkled and a snarl grew on her mouth. "Who are you?! It's families only! If you snuck in to bother him with an interview, I swear I'll-"

"I'll just be leaving." Goodwin cut in. He bowed to the two then headed for the door. "Also, before I go. Don't worry about your attackers, they are getting their full punishment. Scum like that won't be getting away anytime soon." Goodwin said over his shoulder as he finally left the room. A shiver leaped up Atem's spine. While he did not feel remotely bad for those monsters, from what he had seen with his conversation with Goodwin, he did not want to know what went on in his prisons.

"Who was that?" Yugi asked.

"Rex Goodwin."

"That was?! The man that paid for everything?" Rebecca yelped. Atem nodded. She sighed and leaned on Yugi. "There goes my big mouth again. Just go and yell at the nicest person we've met in a while."

* * *

The nurse told Atem to count down from three. Three... two… one… and the last IV was out. Atem opened and closed his fist to better feel how his arm was doing. It was still sore but at least that itchy needle was gone. As Atem studied his arm he could not help but glance at the scars on his upper arm and chest. They were left there from the yo-yo's wires and would probably never heal in this mortal body.

Scars, such a foreign concept to someone who had not had his own body in over five thousand years. Atem honestly found them fascinating, if he did not think too hard about how he got them.

"Ok, that's the last of them, Mr. Muto." The nurse smiled. He then looked to Atem's doctor. She was talking to Yugi and Rebecca and attempting to explain what the hospital thought had happened to Atem these last two weeks.

"We still want to keep him for another few days but other than that, all I can say is this is a miracle. You got quite the guardian angel looking out for you guys." She smiled. Yugi nodded to her then looked to the nurse.

"So, he's allowed to walk around now?" Yugi asked.

"Yep, just keep to the hospital premises and don't do anything too strenuous." The nurse said as he helped Atem to his feet. Atem's first steps were stumbles but he was able to catch himself and play it off with his normal elegance.

"How is it that he more gracefully after two weeks of not using his legs than I am waking up in the morning?" Rebecca chuckled. Yugi simply grinned at her and got up from his chair.

"Thank you for everything you guys have done for us."

"Oh, don't thank us yet. There is a chance that his immune system will be weaker thanks to the medicines we had him on. While he is past the worst of it, he still could get pretty sick." The doctor said.

"We understand, we are just going to see another friend of ours who is also in the hospital. We won't be going far if we have trouble."

"There is another one of you in the hospital? Are you sure your gods aren't just playing around with you guys?" The nurse joked. Yugi gave him a half smile but didn't answer. He was never sure how to react when people called the Egyptian gods "his gods" simply because he once owned their cards.

"Oh, those guys have tried and failed to kill us many times, maybe this time they'll finally get bored." Rebecca cut in, putting her hand on Yugi's shoulder. "Who knows, maybe they'll move onto the next person to make fun of their power," Rebecca said with a wink. The nurse froze then quickly went back to his work. Atem looked on and chuckled. One of the things he was surprised to find out when he was reborn was that the Egyptian Gods cards had grown their own semi-religious following in most duelist. You could always find a duelist by how many gods they cursed when they stubbed their toe.

"You got everything Bec?" Yugi asked. Rebecca lifted up their bag of get-well gifts for Jaden as her answer. "Ok, let's get going."

Atem walked beside the two, occasionally joining their conversation but his mind was far away. How was he going to deal with Goodwin and his mission? He could personally stop looking for information, but all his friends said they were going to help. Atem doubted Goodwin would be tricked by his friends searching instead of Atem. He could try and explain the situation to them but that would just make them search harder. While Atem did want to stop these Earthbound Immortals (not just because of his mission, they made it personal by trying to possess him) he did not want to involve his friends even more.

"Hey watch it! Do you even have eyes?" Atem in his deep thinking had walked ahead of the Mutos and had run into the back of a black-haired duelist. Chazz turned back to Atem with a scowl, but it immediately dropped when he saw who he just snapped at. "Oh, it's you! I'm sorry. Entirely my fault." Chazz quickly said as he attempted to dust off Atem.

"Hey there again Chazz. Coming to see Jaden too?" Yugi smiled as he and Rebecca turned the corner.

"Mr. King of Games! Uh, yes, I am! Because I'm such a caring friend." Chazz proudly stammered. His three Spirit partners that were floating around snickered to themselves.

"Our boss is such a smooth talker, isn't he? You couldn't even tell that his friends had to force him out of bed today under threat." Yellow Ojama laughed.

"Quiet you," Chazz growled as he swatted at the monsters. Yugi and Atem smiled at the scene but Rebecca remained utterly confused.

"This is Chazz Princeton. Jaden's friend that can also see duel spirits and one of AJ's favorite pro duelist." Yugi quickly introduced.

"Oh, now I get it. You're not crazy, just talking to invisible monsters" Rebecca smiled. Chazz did not smile back.

"I get that a lot." He sighed. "Well, my other friends are already at Jaden's room if you want me to show you the way." They agreed and followed Chazz through the hospital. Eventually, the group made it to Jaden's room. When they opened the door, they found Alexis, Jesse, and a tall man with blue-green hair all surrounding Jaden in his bed.

"Hey there Chazz! Got the snacks?" Jaden grinned.

"You've already had enough food, but the Chazz did deliver on something else." Chazz then turned and let the Mutos in. The others gasped as Jaden's grin got even bigger.

"Hi there Jaden. Got room for three more?" Yugi asked.

"We bring gifts," Rebecca said as she lifted up the bag.

"All right! Bring them here." Jaden cheered. While Yugi and Rebecca were able to walk forward Atem found the demonic Yubel blocking his path.

"Err, pardon me?" Atem tried to whisper, unsure of how many people in the room could also see Yubel. Yubel stayed in place, glaring down at Atem.

"Come on up here Atem. No one's going to bite." Jaden said. He quickly gave Yubel a reproving look then smiled at Atem. He nodded and walked through Yubel.

"By the way, guys this is Yugi, his wife Rebecca and his…" Jaden trailed off trying to remember what their cover story was.

"Half-brother, I'm Yugi's half-brother Atem."

"Ya! I remembered that. See I told you guys I wasn't joking when I said I was friends with the Mutos." Jaden smiled proudly to his other friends. "And you guys didn't believe me. Oh ya, this is Alexis, Jesse, you met Chazz, and that lovely scowl belongs to Zane." Jaden said as he pointed to each of his friends ending with the blue-green haired man.

"Nice to meet you all." Yugi smiled as he shook all their hands. "Just call me Yugi." Atem was then surprised to see them want to shake his hand too. He looked closer at them and realized none of them seemed on edge, even the new man. Were they just being usually polite or was his aura not affecting them?

"Geez, this is amazing guys! Look at this Chazz, they brought food." Jaden said as he looked through the gifts, devouring any food he found. Rebeca glanced at Jaden's other friends with a questioning look.

"His fatigue has left him very hungry. Nothin' seems to fill him." Jesse explained.

"Yes, being drained to one percent of your power on multiple occasions will do that." Yubel snarled as she rested her arms on Atem's shoulder. Atem knew she couldn't hurt him but that didn't stop the hairs on the back of his neck from standing on end. Jesse seemed equally freaked out as he watched Yubel.

"Hey, I'm completely fine now. Doc says I should be out of here in a day if I don't suddenly collapse again. Even if it did happen again, I wouldn't mind, then I could have more of this delicious hospital food!" Jaden cheered as he continued to chow down. Even Yugi had to give a questioning look to the others.

"He was our school's garbage disposal." Alexis laughed. She then turned to Atem. "I haven't seen you since you nearly defeated Chazz. Sorry that duel had to be cut off."

"That duel still could have gone either way!"

"This is the boy that scared Chazz so much?" Zane said as he looked over Atem, ignoring Chazz's glare. "You must be quite the duelist." Atem nodded to him but said nothing, not really wanting to remember back to that duel. Zane then looked up to see Yugi whispering something to Rebecca. "And this is the great King of Games?"

"Please, just call me Yugi." He repeated as he found a chair by Jaden and sat down. "You are correct though, I am the King of Games, not for much longer, however."

"So, you admit it," Zane said.

Yugi raised an eyebrow."Sure?"

"And if anyone has a problem with that decision, they can take it up with me." Rebecca cut in. She strode right up to the man about twice her size.

"No problem here. Just making sure. Rumors of Yugi's retirement have been circulating for years. I wanted to be sure this was the real thing." Zane quickly said.

"Good, there have been a few duelists that have been questioning Yugi's retirement. Calling him a coward, I didn't want to have to teach you the same lesson that I did them." She then gave a wicked smile.

"Really, you're a duelist? You really don't look it." Jesse piped in. Rebecca marched over the Jesse and poked a finger into his chest. Yugi had to hold back a laugh.

"Duel, me, you, now," Rebecca ordered.

"He shouldn't have said that." Yugi snickered. Atem looked to him for an explanation. "I'm sure you can tell but Rebecca has been real... protective since the construction site. Now's not the time to get on her bad side."

"You're in for it now Jesse. That's Rebecca Hawkins, she became the American champion at only twelve years old." Alexis smiled. A grin spread across Jesse's face that was very similar to Jaden's grin when he found trouble.

"Really? You're that strong?" He asked excitedly.

"Of course. While I retired from pro dueling earlier then Yugi, I still am the one he trains with. I've even officially beat him a few times. Those battles were never for his title of course." She said.

"When I surrendered." Yugi coughed. Rebecca turned back to him with an evil scowl.

"What did you say? You want to fight too Kuribohlord?" The two couldn't keep up the charade anymore and burst out laughing. Atem guessed that must have been a long running joke between the two. His titled his head as he looked over the scene. Love was...odd.

"Hey, are you still going to duel me? Sorry, I didn't know you, I grew up in another country." Jesse asked nearly jumping in place.

"Oh, it's fine. I'll absolutely duel you. In fact, I'll duel all of ya!" She smiled as she started pushing the others out of the room. She wouldn't take no for an answer and soon led all of Jaden's friends outside to duel. Jaden then tried to follow but was stopped by Yugi.

"No, you don't. You're still resting."

"But awesome duels!" Jaden whined as he fell back into bed.

"I asked her to do that actually. I wanted you two to be able to talk without the others hearing." Yugi said.

"Really?" Jaden asked as Yubel appeared once again by his side. Atem realized what Yugi was setting up and immediately bowed to Jaden.

"I wanted to apologize for taking so much of your power these last few weeks. I truly needed it but that doesn't excuse hurting you." Atem said. Yubel crossed her arms, clearly not satisfied. Jaden though didn't seem to mind at all.

"It's all good, I don't blame ya. I heard about your attackers and coma. I guessed that you were using the Gentle Darkness to bring yourself back." Jaden said. Yugi glanced to Atem with a questioning look. Atem shook his head, they didn't need to involve Jaden with the Earthbound Immortals.

"I promise to do my best to never consciously use your power again."

"As I said, don't worry about it. I don't mind you using it. In fact, it might be even good for the power to be used. I haven't really needed it since my school years."

"What?!" Everyone asked at the same time.

"Serious, I know Yugi and I know he would never abuse the power. If he trusts you then I do too. I know you guys would only use it in dire circumstance. Could you just, I don't know, shoot me a text first before you use it? So, I can find a cozy place to collapse?" Jaden smiled. Yubel let out a growl. Before Jaden could say anything, it was actually Yugi that silenced Yubel with a glare. His glares were rare but powerful. Enough to even quite a duel demon.

"We never plan on hurting Jaden. You can trust us." Yugi said in an even voice. Yubel looked to Yugi, then to Jaden. She sighed and nodded to the two.

"Great, we're all friends again! Now could you guys maybe help me move to the window? I want to see if I can watch the duels from here." Jaden asked while rubbing his hands together. The two did as he asked and as they helped Jaden get up, Atem whispered to Yugi.

"That worked out well. We now have some back-up shadow magic."

"Well, you do. I honestly don't want to use the stuff if I don't have to. It just makes me feel so… dark using it. How did you ever use it back with Zorc?" Yugi asked.

"The Millennium Puzzle. It gave the necessary power while being a wall. It's the reason I could access Zorc's power without the side effects I now get from trying to use the Earthbound Immortals powers."

"Really? Where is it now by the way?"

"Afterlife." Both Yugi and Atem froze. They just mentioned the afterlife by name and there was no darkness or power blocking them.

"Did you just... talk about the afterlife. As in the afterlife we just both came from...?" Yugi trailed off. They could talk freely about the afterlife. While this made Yugi smile, Atem felt his heart stop. It was the Higher Ups power that had been stopping them in the past from speaking. Atem doubted that they suddenly changed their mind, meaning something was happening in the afterlife that was making them focus their power away. Atem looked to Yugi with wide eyes.

"Hey what are you guys talking about back there? Rebecca's got Jesse on the ropes and you guys have to see this!" Yugi started to move back towards the window. Atem was about to stop him but hesitated. The state of the afterlife didn't need to be his problem. Atem instead remained quiet and watched the duel.


	26. Fever

"Yep, thirty-eight degrees Celsius. You definitely have a fever." Yugi sighed as he took the thermometer out of Atem's mouth.

"I feel fine. That device must be off-" Atem started to say but was then cut off by a fit of coughing. Yugi shook his head. Only three days out of the hospital and Atem had already pushed himself to his limit by staying up late at night and hardly eating. Add on his insistence that his friends shouldn't help him with his mission. It was only natural that he would be bedridden once again. The cold weather also didn't help.

"The doctor warned you that your immune system would be weak. Here are just the consequences of not listening to someone who literally trained for more than a decade to keep you healthy."

"I said I was fine, this is just a cough from the weather. I have been through worse-" Another coughing fit. Yugi gently pushed Atem back into bed and covered him with a blanket. Soon AJ came running up the stairs with a bucket of ice.

"I got it, Dad." He smiled as he lugged the bucket into Atem's room.

"You got the whole bucket by yourself? You're becoming so strong AJ. " Yugi smiled as he patted his son's head. He then took out some ice and put it into a plastic bag. He attempted to put it on Atem's head by the teen pushed him away.

"I'm fine, I do not need the ice bag!"

"Yes, you do unless you want to cook your brains!"

"I am not sick!"

"Thirty-eight degrees!"

Rebecca came up the stairs and looked into Atem's room. She covered her mouth to hide her giggle as Atem fought to get out of bed and Yugi adamantly keep him in it.

"Ha ha! That should do it!" Rebecca turned at Yugi's evil laugh. Yugi had managed to use Atem's blankets to tie the pharaoh down in a great blanket cocoon. The most Atem could do was squirm in his new blanket prison.

"I'll get out of here eventually," Atem growled.

"And when you do, I'll just tie you up again. I'll do it all night if I have too. You are, resting." Yugi ordered as he pulled up one of Atem's clothes chest to use as a chair.

"Hmm? I thought you two were going out tonight." Atem asked, finally giving up on fighting the blanket menace.

"Not with you like this. Besides someone has to watch AJ and Chell. We aren't going to call a babysitter with you sick." Yugi said. Atem nodded but couldn't help feeling a little bad for Yugi. While they were originally going to work on Marik's building tonight, it was also the unofficial goodbye Joey celebration. He had to get back to pro dueling and this was his last day off. The gang had planned to go drinking later, the first time for the entire group in over a decade.

"You know I can watch them, honey. I really don't mind." Rebecca said.

"It's fine, someone has to watch this royal pain and I think I'm the only one that can do it," Yugi said as he gestured to Atem. Rebecca looked like she was going to argue but a buzzer went off. That meant someone was at the gate and the facial recognition identified it as a friend.

"I got it," Rebecca said as she walked away with AJ

Yugi reached down and picked up the ice pack once again. This time Atem grudgingly let it rest on his forehead. It actually felt very nice to have there, not because he was sick though. Because it was simply nice to have something cold, or that's what Atem told himself.

"Hey, remember when I got sick after Battle City? We played games for hours in my mind room just to pass the time." Yugi smiled. "You were trying so hard to keep me comfortable and my mind occupied with games." Atem nodded, He remembered that week well. He had been silently panicking over the little flu, of course, he never showed it. What if his partner's disease had got worse? He had no duel monsters strategies to fix that. Those many games were more healing for him then for Yugi.

"Looks like our roles have reversed." Yugi chuckled.

"If that is the case then I would be a lot more comfortable if I was not tied down," Atem said. Yugi laughed.

"And let you make a break for it?" He then got up and looked at the stack of games AJ and Rebecca brought in earlier "Maybe I'll free your hands up though. What do you feel like playing? We have all night-" Yugi was cut off by a phone call. He looked at the phone and sighed. "I'm sorry, I have to take this." Yugi then walked out of the room without another word. Atem sunk deeper into his pillow out of boredom. His ears then perked up, he could almost hear Yugi's call.

"…Yes, I was planning on changing up my deck. There is going to be some old and new cards in it. This is going to be my last official battle, better make it count right? …Yes, I'll keep that in mind, thank you… Gandora has just about been bouncing off the walls for this battle. She's most excited to see one of the male Blue Eyes of yours… Err...you really still don't believe in duel spirits? You have a school full of graduates that can testify to them…Fine, what I'm trying to say is that I'm excited to see… Oh… that… is a shame." Atem tried to sit up but found Yugi's cocoon too well made. When he finally gave up Yugi had already ended his call and started back into the room.

"Was that Kaiba?" Atem asked. Yugi freed Atem's hands. He then picked up Atem's ice bag and started filling it with fresher ice.

"Hm-hm. He was checking to make sure I was actually preparing for the tournament. Oh, what faith he has in me." Yugi said with a roll of his eyes. "It's not like I've been doing these kinds of things for the last two decades."

"When do you think it's going to be?"

"Seto's guessing a month or so."

"A month?! Didn't he just find out about your plans a few weeks ago? Doesn't take much longer to plan an event like this?" Atem asked before starting another coughing fit. Yugi helped him sit up and then went back to refill the ice.

"That's what I asked but apparently a month was all Seto needed. He said he was even disappointed in himself for not being able to get it together faster."

"Really? He truly wants that title." Atem chuckled. Yugi then replaced the bag on Atem's forehead, hesitating a bit before pulling away.

"He said I could borrow any of his cards for this tournament, even his Blue Eyes." Yugi nearly mumbled. Atem's eyes widened.

"If you do that how is he going to participate in the tournament without his ace monsters?"

"He's not. He's just putting it together."

Atem's surprise caused another coughing fit to start. "Is this like the Kaiba Land tournament? He just has more things to focus on?" Atem asked after he could get a breath in.

Yugi sadly shrugged. "I don't know. He was pretty evasive about it. The answer I did get from him was that when he won the King of Games title, and he would if he tried. His words, not mine. He would be in the same situation as me. His company takes too much of his time to adequately be the King of Games."

"But you do not believe that?" Atem asked. Yugi remained quiet for a few moments then leaned back.

"What would I know? I've been gone too long."

Atem looked to Yugi with a raised eyebrow. Yugi noticed his confusion and simply shook his head.

"I come back after ten months to find Joey brawling again and Seto being warmer to people yet colder to the things he loves. Just feels like I've missed a lot..." Yugi sighed. He then turned to Atem. "It must be even weirder for you. With things like everyone's new lives or me retiring." Atem remained silent for a few moments.

"I do not think of it as weird, it is actually quite a relief to see you all living your ordinary lives. I remember existing in the back of your mind, listening in to you all dreaming together about your futures on the roof of the school or at the arcade. You would not understand how amazing it is to see you all actually achieve your dreams." Another cough, but it did not slow Atem down this time. "And get new dreams." This made Yugi smile.

"I'm glad. Just, whatever happens, know that you'll always be important to us. You were never a footnote." The teen recognized that wording Yugi used in his last sentence. Atem had used those very words right before Gandora gained a body. There had been a lot on Atem's mind lately. How to deal with Goodwin, the Immortals, his mission, yet there was one worry he was not able to get rid of. The things he had yelled at Yugi….

"Back in the yard, before I gave Gandora a body… I said some horrible things then."

"Huh? Are you still worried about that? Yes, those words kind of stung, but I know you weren't yourself then. I don't blame you, fights are bound to happen when you have South American monsters trying to control you." Yugi said.

"I know but… I did not have time to say this back then thanks to Gandora and the construction site attack…" Atem tried to say but kept being cut off by coughs.

"What's bringing this confession on? Its ancient history at this point, no need to worry." Yugi asked as he helped Atem get a drink of water.

"Probably the fever, but nonetheless, everything I said back in the yard is absolutely false, I know it and you know it. I am not hurt by you giving up the King of Games title. It's just a title, we have much more to represent our partnership." This made Yugi grin, then another coughing fit shook Atem's body.

"Wow, this fever is affecting you worse than I thought. Look at you getting all feely on me." Yugi laughed, yet he still felt warmth from Atem's sincere words.

"Maybe so. Ugh, I am glad Mana or Mahad are not here to see me like this. They would react worse to me becoming sick then I when you became ill. They especially would not like this flu, it's nothing like the sickness we had in Egypt." Atem said offhandedly. Yugi sat back on his makeshift chair and crossed his arms in thought.

"Have you had any contact with them?"

"No, then again I have not tried in a while. I doubt it would work now, however. That is just how the afterlife is." Atem took another drink of water.

"The afterlife that we both came from and that I was alive in?"

"Are you still testing whether or not we can talk about the afterlife?" Atem asked.

"Yes because… I want to tell our friends and family everything. How I wasn't saving the world, how we thought I was dead." This caused Atem to choke on his water. Yugi had to pat him on the back just to stop him coughing.

"Why? The story we told was not a complete lie. It might make things more confusing to explain it to them."

"I know, I know. It's just I hate lying to them. They would understand if we explained." Yugi said. Atem nodded, he had also felt bad about lying to them about where they were those ten months but what was there to do? They had enough to be concerned about with the Earthbound Immortals.

The Immortals were starting to worry Atem more. If the Higher ups had to focus their power elsewhere those demons must be causing a great deal of trouble in the afterlife. The Immortals were only barely seeping into the afterlife last Atem had been there. If they had enough power to be attacking him up in the living world then they must be everywhere in the afterlife. Atem looked down at his reflection in his cup of water. Here he was stuck in a blanket cocoon while his family was probably fighting for their very souls. If only he could contact them, but the Higher ups most likely would keep him from that too…

"Wait! They have to focus their power elsewhere!" Atem gasped. This made his throat feel even worse but he didn't care.

"What are you talking about?" Yugi asked but Atem didn't answer, he was thinking too deeply. This fixed many of Atem's problems, Goodwin couldn't arrest them for looking this up, his friends wouldn't be putting themselves in direct danger, and they would get all the information they needed at once.

"The Higher ups are not putting their power into stopping us from talking, I would bet that their barrier against contacting the afterlife is weaker now too," Atem said.

Yugi titled his head and raised an eyebrow. "What are you-"

"Think about it, we wouldn't have to find information piece by piece anymore or wait for you to have an epiphany. We would just pool our resources into finding a way to contact the afterlife. Talk to my family or even that paradise leader for the People of the Stars and we have our information." Atem said, then immediately felt drained and fell back into his pillow.

"You're getting too excited for someone with a fever. Now lay down and explain to me how contacting the afterlife is easier than searching for information the old fashion way?"

"It will be, just trust me. First things first, we have to tell everyone what actually happened. When the next time we can get everyone together-"

"You really, REALLY don't have to do this!" Both boys turned as they heard Rebecca's voice coming up the stairs with two more sets of footsteps beside her's. Whoever was beside her had much longer legs and was taking every other step.

Téa came around the corner and walked into Atem's room, AJ right beside her.

"Yay! Aunt Téa's babysitting!" AJ cheered.

"What?!" Yugi gasped.

"I got your text about not coming. You guys are not staying here tonight. Joey would never forgive me if I let you guys do this. So, I'm watching these scoundrels tonight! No, if, ands, or buts about it." She then strode into the room and started to push Yugi out.

"You don't have to do this Téa. Your vacation is ending soon too! Don't you want to say goodbye to Joey?" Yugi tried.

"We two have had enough quality time together the months we thought you were gone. He'll understand why I'll be missing the party if you two get to go. Add on I've barely spent any of this vacation time with my favorite kids in the world. So, you guys get out so I can have them to myself." She demanded.

"But Atem's sick!"

"I can deal with it. Atem's going to be a cakewalk compared to the times I've had to deal with you when you were sick. Remember the three witches? I've got this guys, now out of this house and have a splendid evening!"

"But!" Atem heard the door slam shut. This, of course, started Chell crying but she was quickly quieted by Téa, her fourth favorite person in the world if you didn't count Bakura's hair.

AJ came running up the steps to Atem's room.

"This is going to be awesome! Téa never gets to watch us, ever! She even brought her her strongest monster team. We are going to play Dad's game all night! And there will be popcorn and movies and-" Atem cut AJ off with another coughing fit. "Oh right, you're sick… Well, it will still be awesome! Just more the healing type of awesome!" He then scampered away to prepare for the "awesome" night. Atem took this time to try and undo his blanket cocoon. Even with his hands now free he was surprised at how well it was made with only a blanket.

"Oh no, you don't." Téa came in with Chell waddling beside her. She took one look at Atem trying to get out of bed and immediately went into action. Before Atem could blink she had redone the blanket cocoon, refilled the ice bag, and forced him back in a laying position.

"How?! This blanket is even tighter than when Yugi did it!" Atem growled in frustration.

"That's because I am the Sick Cocoon's original creator. How do you think I managed to keep Yugi or Rebecca in bed all the times in the past they were sick? I swear the entire Muto family just want to make themselves worse by overworking." Téa sighed. She then put down her bag and looked over the games stacked in the room. "Good choices, what do you feel like playing Atem?" She smiled. Atem stared dumbfounded.

"Oh, I'm sorry, it must hurt for you to talk," Téa said.

"No, no it's just. Why are you here?"

"Didn't you hear me announcing it up and down the hallway as I forced those two out? I'm here to hang out with you guys. I don't have a lot of time left before I have to go back to work so I thought I should seize the day while I still had time." Téa smiled as she patted Chell's forehead. Chell looked up to Atem with her big black eyes. Ever since Atem had gotten back from the hospital she has never cried in his presences. In fact, she has learned that Atem equals fun if you throw stuff at him. She was about to start more fun by throwing her binky when AJ came crashing back in.

"I got more games!" AJ announced as he nearly slid over the wooden floor.

"Watch it now. Running in socks on this kind of floor will only lead to more people bedridden." Téa smiled as AJ quickly collected himself and came into the room. Atem looked at the mountain of games on the floor and in AJ's arms. He was not getting out of this anytime soon.


	27. Room for Both

**A/N: Would you believe this story was originally only going to be thirteen chapters? Thank you all for your support and kind words. See you in two weeks!**

"So, while you guys volunteered by the bridge, these were some of the orphans I worked with." Téa smiled as she flipped through her phone's pictures. There were many, many children. All surrounded by rubble and grime but they were all smiling and laughing for the camera. One group of three young boys seemed especially happy.

"Now this really wasn't an orphanage. It was just a kind lady named Martha that helped anyone she could." She continued. Atem and AJ looked at the pictures with interest. Atem was still stuck in his bed and AJ was sitting next to Téa in the clothes chest. They had just finished watching a movie Téa starred in (Atem thought it was good, AJ found it boring) when Atem asked about what Téa did when they all volunteered at the bridge all those weeks ago. The next ten minutes were filled with Téa's stories of the loveable troublemakers the orphans of the Satellite were.

"Wow, and they all live on the Satellite?" AJ asked. "There's so many."

"Many children lost their parents in the Zero Reverse. That's why there are kind people like Martha." She swiped to a picture of a kindly looking Hispanic women. "She really didn't like the cameras my agent tried to send. I don't blame her, I didn't want them either. So, these are the only pictures of my time volunteering." Téa giggled. She suddenly gasped as she looked at the time on the phone.

"It's ten o'clock! Way past your bedtime AJ This is why your parents never let me watch you guys."

"Ahh! I'm fine, I'm not tired at all!"

"Maybe not now, but you will be when you have to wake up tomorrow. Come on, off to bed." AJ let out one long continuous whine as he was led to his room by Téa.

Atem smiled, it had been a fun night. Not productive in any way towards his mission but maybe that was for the best. Atem got to try out many new games he had never heard of before, he still beat Téa and AJ soundly at them but that was expected. He even got to try the video game version of Yugi's card game. That one Téa actually beat him at, then again, he did not have a great deal of time to catch and train a monster team to compare to Téa's veteran team. That did not stop the two from celebrating finally beating the pharaoh at something. Atem cheered with them. Téa had all the energy that she had as a teen and she still seemed to be able to share that energy with anyone within ten feet of her.

As Téa helped AJ to bed Atem stayed in his room, he was still stuck in the sickness cocoon. To pass the time he looked down at the mess his room was now in. Food wrappers, discarded games, and movie cases scattered the floor. It almost reminded Atem of Yugi's soul room. He wondered if it still looked similar to how it looked eighteen years ago. That thought led Atem to think of his own soul room. Now that he was no longer trapped in the Millennium Puzzle it had to look much different. He wondered if there was a way for him to see it now. Most mortals would never know their soul room without the Millennium Key's power. It was only because he and Yugi had the Millennium Puzzle that they were able to travel freely to their mind space.

Atem once again reached up to his chest to grasp a necklace that wasn't there. He really had to stop that, it was a habit that grew during his years in the afterlife. The Millennium Puzzle had become almost a shoulder for Atem to lean on, to help ground him when things were getting out of hand. While it was once his prison, it was also the item that led him on all his adventures. It became almost a comfort for Atem to grasp it and know that he was no longer trapped in it. He wouldn't say he missed it, but his neck definitely felt empty without it on.

"I've texted Yugi to see when their coming back but they haven't answered," Téa said as she walked into the room. Atem shook himself out of his thoughts and smiled at Téa.

"They're having fun, no need to come back too soon," Atem said.

"Ya, but they better not be having too much fun without me." Téa pouted as he walked over to Atem and felt his forehead.

"I am sorry you did not get to go along."

"Huh? Oh, I was joking Atem. I've gone out drinking enough with everyone to know about what will happen. Joey will drink too much and start some trouble. Marik will cheer him on while Bakura or Yugi try to stop him. Rebecca will either be right next to Joey doing the same stupid thing or be knocked out. Just like her husband, she has a low tolerance for alcohol, but unlike Yugi, she doesn't let that stop her from downing an entire bottle." This made Atem chuckle imagining the scene.

"Are they going to be alright?"

"Oh of course. Yugi doesn't drink so they always have at least one sane person with them. He'll at least get them all home safely."

"He doesn't?" asked Atem.

"Nope he doesn't, and not for the usual reasons. It's for the world's safety. With one drink Yugi quickly gets… I would say violent but even drunk Yugi hates violence… let's just say he finds different ways to show the world his displeasure." That made Atem straight out laugh imaging Yugi.

"It's not a joking matter. I swear if he realized he had shadow magic earlier a few bars would be in the shadow realm now." Téa laughed along.

"So that is what people do nowadays? Back in my day, we had much more sophisticated ways to spend our evenings, such as wrestling with sticks. It truly was the height of culture." Atem said in his refined pharaoh voice, which only made Téa laugh harder.

"Shh-shh. We are going to wake up Chell." Téa stammered as she got herself under control. Atem grinned but soon the fatigue that comes with sickness overwhelmed him once again.

"I should leave you to rest." She started to say while getting up.

"No, it is fine. I'm not that tired yet." Atem weakly said.

"Your starting to sound like AJ You both need sleep; good thing you guys don't have something like school tomorrow or Rebecca and Yugi would kill me," Téa said. She then filled up a glass for Atem and replaced his ice. While she did that Atem looked forward towards the door. By it was AJ's backpack, he had brought it to the room so he could get his deck out of it.

"Do you think I will have to go to school soon?" asked Atem.

"What?"

"I know sixteen-year-olds still go to high school. Won't people start asking questions since I've been here so long?"

"No!" Téa nearly yelped. It was enough to make Atem pause at her sudden mood change. Téa quickly collected herself as said in a much more controlled tone. "I didn't mean for it to come out like that. What I meant to say is no, it's best for you to focus on these Immortals."

"…My thoughts too. I was simply wondering." Atem said. It became quiet between the two. Téa began to clean up the room a little before she left.

"…How… long do you think it's going to be?" she eventually asked.

"Pardon?"

"Until you have to go back. Are we just going to find a random piece of information and you'll disappear?"

"Oh…" As Atem looked at her he had a sudden flashback to the ceremonial battle. Téa's same pleading eyes, next to Yugi's tears and Joey's quivering voice, it was almost enough to convince him not to walk through that shining doorway. "It's unclear, this mission is more than just finding information on the Earthbound Immortals." Atem then thought about telling her the truth about where he and Yugi had been those ten months. He had wanted to wait for everyone but maybe if Téa knew she could help the others understand. She was the one they all looked to when they heard about Atem being alive again. She was also one of the few he undeniable trusted, in this life and the next.

"Yugi and I haven't been entirely honest with you…"

* * *

"So Yugi was the afterlife all those months!" Téa gasped. Atem nodded. He had told her everything other than that he sacrificed his paradise, not even Yugi knew that. All anyone knew was that the same time Yugi went back, Atem followed with this mission. "And you'll go back when you save the world?'" she asked

"Yes, I believe when I defeat these Immortals I will go back to the afterlife. That is why I need information on them. I can't fight something if I do not know what it is." Téa leaned on the wall and rubbed the back of her neck.

"You just keep getting roped into saving the world, don't you?" Téa said.

Atem nodded. "Yes, but this isn't like the other times. These things are not actively attacking the world or any of you. I could possibly stay here for many more years if I do not find anything." This made Téa's back stiffen. Atem noticed that she had a similar expression to when she had yelped in response to his question about going to school.

"What is it?"

"What, what is what?" Téa said quickly hiding her expression with a smile. Atem looked right into her eyes with a knowing look. Téa sighed as she glanced down at her hands.

"Before you ask, it's definitely not because I don't want you here. I am so… happy doesn't even begin to describe having you back with us. It's… It's just I don't know how we will take you leaving again." She said. Atem leaned towards her.

"When you left the first time, it broke everyone, even just a little…" Téa looked away from Atem. "You weren't there to see Joey cry, or Bakura's guilt, or… Yugi completely fall apart... Of course, everyone healed, time is amazing like that. Even Yugi was only down for a couple of weeks. He soon was the one to cheer us up. We all kept you in our hearts and moved on with our lives." Téa then faced Atem.

"Having you back is amazing, more than amazing! I know everyone is loving every minute of it and I hope you are not regretting it either but… But the thought of you coming back into our lives long term, going to school, growing up with us, just to leave… I-I don't think we can do it again." Atem remained in stunned silences.

"I'm sorry…everyone deals with this, it's called death. I'm just being clingy. I don't know what I was on about." Téa quickly said. She was starting to get up when Atem put a hand on her shoulder. She stopped and turned to him.

"Téa, I understand."

"What?"

"I mourned just you guys did when we parted ways."

"You…you did?"

"Of course, I had my family but I could never replace you all. I broke down just as soon as I got to the other side. Now, coming back and being here with you guys… knowing that I will leave soon. It hurts just as much. You are not being stupid or clingy, and I am glad you told your true feelings me when I asked." Atem said. He had no idea if it was the right thing to say. He still felt like comforting people was something he could not do well, yet Téa hugged him. She held him there for a long time and he let her stay.

"When it happens, it will not be the end. Just as the first time was not."

"I know."

Until another coughing fit started and Atem had to pull back.

"Oh sorry! I was supposed to be letting you sleep. Not all this." Téa smiled. She picked up the last of the games. "Thank you for talking with me Atem." He laid back down and was expecting her to leave. He was then surprised by a quick kiss on his forehead. Atem froze, Téa gave him a motherly smile and left the room, closing the door behind her. Atem laid frozen for many minutes. Unsure of what just happened.

* * *

It was completely dark; the floor could not be distinguished from the walls. Everything was a dark purple color. The only thing Atem could make out was a distant door. Had he done it? Had he made it to his soul room? Atem slowly walked up to the door. It was made of gold and had intricate carvings all throughout it, the biggest being the Eye of Wdjat. The darkness from the surrounding area tinted the whole door in a violet shade. Atem hesitated, it took Yugi a good bit of meditation for him to travel to his soul room, Atem did not remember meditating at all. In fact, he could not even remember how he even got here. He was about to turn around when he heard familiar laughter from behind the door.

"Mana?" Atem breathed as he pushed open the door.

For being metal, the door moved easily and it stopped exactly when Atem stopped pushing. Inside was a room with walls completely decorated in hieroglyphics and duel monsters. Beside them were large statues of the gods and more monsters, mostly duel but a few of Yugi's creation got their own statue. The room wasn't brightly lit, only enough to be able to see across the room, just how Atem liked it. In the center of this room was a golden throne. He slowly walked up to the throne to find it was in front of a large table lined with equally golden chairs. On this table were games of every kind organized into boxes. He recognized simply wooden toys from his childhood to flashing electronic games. All of which brought a smile to his face to see again. Atem sat on the throne so he could have a better look at the games. He then noticed that everything in the room, the chairs, the statues, even the pictures on the wall faced towards the throne, yet the throne was the most dimly lit part of the room.

Atem scanned the room, no source of laughter. he was not worried though, this was his soul room. He felt absolutely at peace here, unlike his old soul room. Atem reached out and found a puzzle in the toys to fiddle with. This room was much different than how it used to be. It no longer had that musty tome smell and it didn't feel foreboding. The old room felt like it was closing in on you and at the same time stretching on for eternity. His new room actually followed the laws of physics, something Atem was more excited about then he liked to admit.

Atem looked down at the puzzle he pulled out, it was a 3D puzzle made of clear pieces. He didn't know what they would make but he still attempted to connect them.

"Hey there Atem! Long time no see!" Atem nearly jumped as he looked up to see Mana in one of the golden chairs. Her space was brightly lit, unlike Atem's throne.

"Mana?" Atem gasped.

"Of course, who else would it be?" She smiled. Atem studied her, the light on her let him see almost every detail of her. She looked like Mana, or at least how Atem remembered her.

"What are you doing in my soul room?" Atem asked, still playing with the puzzle while focusing on her.

"Well, the real Mana is not actually in your soul room. I am just an important enough person in your life for you to imagine me up when you want."

"I can bring people here? I could not do that before, neither could Yugi."

"You two did not exactly have a normal soul room. This is your mind Atem, you can have anyone you want in here." Mana explained. Atem decided to try it and soon enough all his Egyptian family was at the table. Mana, Mahad, Priest Seto, both his father and uncle when they were young. They were all there, fully lit. Atem knew that this was his own creation but he couldn't help but smile. He had missed them, more than he had let himself acknowledge.

"How is the adventure in the living world? Must be a great deal easier now that you can do things on your own." Mahad smiled.

"I am still disappointed in myself that I was not able to find a way to let you keep your body when we had to lock you away the first time. Finding a host put too much to chance." Seto growled.

"We all did our best and it worked out fine. The Pharaoh was even able to save the world from threats we did not know about thanks to the precautions you put in place." Aknadin reassured his son. The group continued to talk and laugh around Atem. This is something that he rarely got to see and was enjoying every moment of it. His family, all together. There was one face Atem focused on more than any other, his father's.

When Atem became the paradise pharaoh many of his family and friends left their paradise to help him. His father after thinking long and hard on it decided not to come. Atem understood why and even helped convince his father to stay in his paradise. He had enough help with his priests and wanted his father to rest. It didn't stop Atem from missing him, however.

"You seem well Atem. Are they treating right in the living world?" His father asked.

"Very well, they leave me not wanting for anything. That did not stop me from getting this flu, however." Atem smiled. If these were his own creation then they would know what he was talking about.

"You are sick?!" Both Mana and Mahad yelled, nearly knocking over their chairs to get a better look at Atem.

"I'm fine. Just a fever and some coughing, nothing too big. They even have medicines that actually takes the pain away, so the most I feel is tired." Atem explained. "Even then, all my friends up here do their best to make me feel comfortable, other than untying me." The others laughed, they got the joke. Atem grinned, his puzzle was coming together and he was enjoying this rare time with his family, the only thing missing was…

"What are you looking for Atem?" Mana asked. They all turned to see Atem looking across the table at the empty chairs.

"I'm trying to get my friends in here. I know it'll only be what I imagine, but I would still like to see you guys meet them." Everyone went quiet. "What is it?"

"Erm, how to say this..." Mana trailed off.

"Both groups cannot be here at the same time. You only have room for one." Seto said bluntly.

"Why? It is my room; shouldn't I be able to do what I want?" Atem asked. His hands were still working on the translucent puzzle pieces. The others in the room glanced at one another uncomfortably.

"It is one or the other, not both." Aknadin restated.

"There is clearly enough room." Atem tried again. Mana sighed and got up from her chair.

"Do not worry about it Atem. We will leave so they can come in."

"No, don't go." Atem was about to get up but had to put together another few pieces of the puzzle.

"It is fine, this is not the first time you have abandoned us for them," Seto grumbled. This surprised Atem so much that he accidentally cut himself on a puzzle piece. He glanced down at the yellow puzzle pieces and his cut for only a second.

"I have never abandoned you!"

 _I will trade my place in paradise for his soul. My place in the afterlife if I have to. Yugi must return to the world of the living._

The words echoed around the room.

"You did not even think of asking for our thoughts or help. In fact, you did not even think of us at all." Aknadin said.

"I am glad you were not there when we got the news about you leaving us again. It was losing you for the second time." Seto said.

"It hurt all of us. You do not think we would mourn too?" His father said as he too got up.

"Do not listen to them Atem." Mana cut in. "It really is fine. We understand we are just a footnote in your life right now. You have a life to live. We will leave you to it." Mana smiled, Atem could tell she was hiding a frown. Atem stared at them all with a mixture of sadness and shock. He was stunned into silence. The only sound he made was the clicking of the puzzle being put together. They were leaving and Atem found he couldn't stand up.

"Yes, what I did was stupid and I'm sorry. I did not have time to think things through at that moment! But I wasn't abandoning you all! I was just-" Atem finally yelled out but his family was already disappearing into a dark corner of his soul room.

"You can't have both of us. It is either your Egyptian family or your living one. There is no room for both." A voice echoed. Atem felt numb. He was being forced to make an impossible decision. He looked down to see he had only one piece left before completing the puzzle. It was a gold, upside down pyramid. The only piece left was the center, a large piece with the Eye of Wdjat on it.

Atem could not have both, but maybe he could change that. If he had the Millennium Puzzle, he could use shadow magic freely. He could connect to the Earthbound Immortals' power and steal all he wanted from them. This puzzle would stop them from attacking his mind. All he had to do was finish the puzzle. Finish the puzzle, finish the puzz-

'Wait, wasn't this puzzle originally clear?' Atem stopped himself from putting in the last piece in, he looked at the cut on his hand. It was bleeding but he felt no pain. That was not how soul rooms worked. This wasn't real.

Atem sat straight up on his bed, he was soaked in a cold sweat. He fought to get out of his blanket prison and swung his legs over the side of the bed. He rested his head in his hands. He had been dreaming. It was just a dream. People can't travel to a soul room without a Millennium Item. Getting to his soul room was impossible, it was just a nightmare. He had nightmares before in this body, so why was this so bad? Atem shuddered as he remembered his dream in the hospital, the one about the hallway at the end of his and Yugi's soul rooms... He quickly shook that thought away. It was just a dream, mortals had bad dreams all the time, especially when hurt. It just happened that these dreams were the first dreams that he remembered vividly after waking up.

AJ's scream echoed through the silent house. Atem immediately jumped to his feet and raced to AJ's room. He tried to turn and break into the boy's room but his socks slid on the slick wood floor. Atem went flying off in the opposite direction as Téa came zooming up the stairs and into AJ's room. Atem quickly got to his feet and looked inside.

"It was so scary…We were back with those men and the yo-yo went for me this time and…" AJ sobbed as he held tighter to a cooing Téa.

Another nightmare.

Yugi said that AJ had them often now thanks to the construction site attack. Atem sighed and pulled away from the door. The last person AJ would want to see right now was the reason for that attack, so Atem quietly walked away. He felt thirsty but the water cup in his room was empty. He didn't want to pass by AJ's open door to get to the bathroom. Atem silently slinked down the steps and went to the kitchen, keeping the lights off.

Atem got a drink from the facet and an extra cup for AJ. He then looked up from the sink, right into a pair of giant, glowing red eyes. Thankfully he did not yell, but he did fall back. In the kitchen window was Gandora's worried face.

"AJ's fine. Just another nightmare." Atem whispered after calming himself. Gandora nodded then looked towards the dining table, specifically at Yugi's chair.

"I don't know where he is." Atem looked at the time, two o' clock. "They sure are late."

Gandora groaned and fell back on the ground. She spent too much energy worrying about these soft beings when she should have been sleeping.

Atem chuckled quietly then started towards the stairs. He noticed that he was purposefully staying in the darkest parts of the room. He hadn't tried to sneak around like this since Yugi first solved the puzzle. Yet, Atem still felt cautious about stepping into the moonlight. As Atem was contemplating this the front door swung open. In walked the silhouettes of a hunched over Yugi with Rebecca leading him. The two didn't seem to notice Atem as they passed him to get to the kitchen. Rebecca led Yugi to a chair and then stumbled over to the freezer.

"Why is dere no ice in hereee?" Rebecca slurred. Atem quietly walked over to the kitchen and watched Rebecca attempt to close the freezer, and somehow miss every time.

"It's probably because it's all up with Atem. It really is ok Rebecca. Just go lay on the couch. I can deal with this." Yugi said while still holding his head. He tried to get up but Rebecca flopped over to his and attempted to stop him.

"What is wrong?" Atem asked. Both Yugi and Rebecca yelled. Rebecca even jumped back so hard that she hit her head on a self. She fell to the ground, out cold. Both boys ran to her side as Téa came running down the stairs.

"She's fine, she's fine. I don't even think she hit her head that hard. I think she's just out from the drinks." Yugi said as he checked over her. He then picked her up and gently laid her on the couch in the living room.

"Sorry to scare you," Atem whispered.

"Don't worry about it. I swear sometimes though that your eyes get redder in the dark. Anyway, it's been a long night. I'm so sorry Téa about being so late, you're free to stay here so you don't have to drive in the dark." Yugi said.

"Thank you, but where were you guys? You usually text if you're going to stay later than ten." Téa said as she walked to the light switch.

"I know. Things just got…" The light flipped on and Atem immediately froze. He stared with wide eyes as he noticed Yugi's black eye and many other cuts and bruises. "Out of hand."


	28. Power and Force

"What happened?!" Téa nearly yelled, she only just barely kept her voice low enough to not wake the others.

"It really isn't as bad as it looks-" Yugi tried before being cut off by Atem.

"How did you get hurt? Did someone attack you?" Atem asked. He concealed his panic well but was unable to hide a hint of a growl.

"No, well… kind of… he didn't mean it, I don't think-"

"You guys were attacked?! Was it a fight at the bar?" Téa asked.

"No, it was outside the bar…"

"Was it some of that 'paparazzi'? Sector Security maybe?" Atem asked before being stopped by a cough.

"It was nothing like that…it was just... It's too late for all this!" This made both Atem and Téa fall silent. Yugi continued. "Look, I'm sorry it's just…let me get a blanket for you Téa. I'm sorry that you'll have to sleep on the couch. Our old spare room is Atem's now."

Téa slowly looked from Yugi to Atem. Eventually, she shook her head.

"It's fine. Let's all just get some sleep. We can talk more in the morning, err, later morning." She said looking at the time.

Atem nodded as Yugi picked up Rebecca and moved her upstairs. Atem followed him while Téa remained below. As Yugi brought Rebecca to their room Atem followed silently behind.

"Don't ask Atem. It's just too late." Yugi sighed.

"I understand. Goodnight- morning." Atem then split off from Yugi and sat in his room. He heard Yugi pull something from the hallway closet and go back down the stairs. A few minutes later he came back up and closed his door.

Atem remained sitting in his room. He felt a lot better sickness wise. He still had a headache and a sore throat but nothing as bad as earlier. Still, he could already tell he was not going to get any sleep. At first, his thoughts were on Yugi, then it changed to his nightmares, then finally to his mission.

Atem, a little less sick, realized he had not in the best condition to make plans with Yugi yesterday, especially about doing something as impossible as contacting the afterlife. How did a simple fever make it seem so easy then? Yes, it was possible, probably much easier than it had ever been before. Yet, it was still contacting the afterlife. People have been trying and failing to do it since the beginning of time. Then again, none of those people were Atem. For him, it would be feasible do it, as long as his lucky stars all aligned, every one of the gods really liked him, and no black ravens came within a mile of him. Even then it would only be a chance, but he had to try. For his family, for his friends.

* * *

A few sleepless hours later, Atem looked up to see grey sunlight starting to trickle in through his curtains. He listened to the house, it was completely silent. The others were still sleeping. Atem couldn't stand being stuck in his room anymore, he was itching to do something. He slowly crept out, stifling any coughs he had. He then slinked down the stairs, doing everything he could to not wake Téa sleeping on the couch.

What to do, what to do? What could he do that would make things easier on his friends? Atem looked into the kitchen, right at his old enemy. The 3D printer. If he could get breakfast ready that would get everyone in the right mood when they woke up. More specifically, Yugi in a talking mood. Atem had to know who hurt his partner.

Atem sighed and quietly padded to the kitchen. The kitchen had a sliding door to block it from the rest of the house. Atem closed it so he could work without waking anyone. Rebecca and Yugi had specifically installed that door to dampen the sounds from the kitchen, Atem knew nothing less than a dragon's roar could be heard through it.

Atem then faced the cursed machine. Atem could deal with this. He had fought villains and madmen of every kind, he could take a little piece of technology. He did as Joey had shown him all those weeks ago. Tap the touchscreen, look for the food you want, type in how much you want (Don't type in a zero unless you want ten more of your items, Atem learned that with the bread incident), and fill in the ingredients it asks for. It could take already made food and break it down to be used again, but Atem didn't feel like fiddling with that feature at the moment. He just wanted eggs, toast, and bacon. Atem filled everything in and after checking it three times, he turned on the machine.

It roared to life as it began to make enough food for the family plus Téa. This is why the Mutos had installed a soundproof door. The thing was loud. Not loud enough to be heard through the walls, however. Atem knew the most anyone would hear from this room would be a slight humming. He waited by the machine as it worked. As he waited, Atem started to notice a rhythm coming from the machine. It honestly reminded him of last night with Téa and AJ. Halfway through the night the two had wanted to do a bit of karaoke. They had rocked out to songs Atem never heard before. While Atem enjoyed most of them, there was only one he had really come to love.

"Ooo, this one's my favorite! It's an old Norwegian song, like older than you, Uncle." AJ had cheered as it came on the first time. That had been a truly fun night. Something Atem didn't have too often. As Atem leaned on the counter by the 3D printer he couldn't help but tap his foot to the beat the printer was making, it was so similar to that song last night. Atem started humming the song. That was all he was going to do originally, but things escalated.

"Oh, things that you say…" Atem started to whisper along with the printer. No one could hear him in here, no one would know.

"You're shying away, I'll be coming for you anyway…" He hadn't sung last night, making an excuse about his throat.

"Take on me ON! I'll be gone! IN A DAAYYY" He had no hope of hitting that high note (it actually caused him to go into another coughing fit) but after everything this last week, he needed a silly release. And it was very stress-relieving until he turned to the backdoor. It was open, Joey was standing there, with his phone out.

"…"

"…"

The printer beeped to signal it was done making food.

"…"

"…"

"You know I have to kill you now."

* * *

Yugi shot up from his laying position. Joey's cry could be heard all the way from the second floor.

"Are we being attacked?" Rebecca groaned.

"No, I think that's Joey though." Yugi breathed as he threw off the covers and ran to the window. He pushed his head out into the cold morning air, just in time to see Atem chasing Joey across the backyard towards the gate.

"No, wait! Joey!" Yugi yelled. This made Joey put on another burst of speed and he vaulted the gate instead of going through it. Yugi pulled back from the window and raced downstairs.

* * *

Atem skidded to a stop in front of the gate and went back inside. It was chilly out there. While he didn't feel anything when he was chasing Joey, as soon as he came back inside his regretted not putting socks on. As Atem rubbed his hands together to warm them, Yugi came running in.

"Where's Joey?!" Yugi gasped. Atem stepped back in surprise. He doubted Yugi would get this worried over him simply chasing Joey.

"He just left. Good riddance too…" Atem tried to joke. Yugi ran past Atem to the backdoor. He threw it open only to find an empty backyard with a dark grey sky. A strong wind blew in, it made both Muto brothers shiver. Yugi reluctantly closed the door with a sigh. Atem watched as Yugi's head turned downward, his fingers running through his spiky hair. Yugi then straightened up and walked back towards Atem.

"What did he want?" Yugi asked. Atem couldn't read much from Yugi's expression. It didn't help that Yugi's new black eye had closed over.

"I do not know. I… really didn't give him a chance to talk." Atem admitted. Yugi let out another sigh. Atem, not knowing what else to do, handed Yugi a plate of food. This made the corners of Yugi's mouth turn up a bit.

"Finally figured out the 3D printer?"

"Maybe, only one way to find out," Atem said as to gestured to the kitchen table. Both boys sat at the table with their plate of food and a glass of water. Yugi robotically ate the food while he rested his head on one hand. Atem didn't even think he was tasting the food.

"I'm sure you've figured it out then..." Yugi began after moments of silent thinking. "I know you're probably mad at Joey right now, but you shouldn't have chased him away. That solves nothing." Atem didn't know what he had 'figured out' but he didn't stop Yugi from continuing. "The whole reason why we were so late last night was that we were looking everywhere for him."

"Really? Why were you doing that?" Atem asked.

"To make sure he was ok. You know very well Joey wouldn't have given me this black eye if something wasn't wrong."

Atem dropped the piece of toast he was about to bite into. Its clatter on the plate echoed around the kitchen. "Joey…attacked you?!" Atem tried to growl, it came out more like a strangled cough.

"Yes, I thought you had somehow figured it out. Isn't that why you chased him away?"

"No… I... Joey? He gave you that black eye and cuts?"

"He only gave me the black eye. The cuts came from trying to look for him in the middle of the night." Yugi said, not taking his eyes off his plate. "I don't think he meant it. A few moments after the others pulled him off me, I saw the realization cross his face and he ran. We've had no word from him since." Atem took in a deep breath and then coolly asked.

"What caused him to do that?"

Yugi shrugged, then answered in a monotone voice. "It was probably finding out I was hiding something."

"What did he find out? You hide almost nothing from Joey."

"That I was in the afterlife. That I shouldn't have survived the Zero Reverse. And that you want to contact the afterlife. They all know now." Yugi then returned to his cup of water without another word. Instead of drinking it, however, he simply swirled the liquid around in his glass. Atem remained quite as he processed this information.

"You told everyone the truth about how we met in the afterlife?"

"I know, I know. I should have waited for you but it was Joey that actually pressured me. He was poking holes in our original story so I thought I might as well explain it to everyone then and there. Joey… didn't take it well."

"Why though? What difference is it to him that you were in the afterlife those ten months?" Téa asked. The two turned to see her standing at the kitchen door. Atem quickly explained how he had told her about the ten months and the two brothers explained everything else to her.

"I think it was just grief, fear, and alcohol. I survived while his family didn't." Yugi guessed.

"That doesn't sound like the Joey I know at all," Téa said. "There must be another explanation."

"Well, I think that his drunk mind simply thought you were admitting that you were a zombie. You know how he hates curses and the undead. He has been your best friend for too long for it to be anything that serious." Rebecca added. She then stumbled into the kitchen and sat down beside Yugi with some white pills and water.

"Morning Honey." Yugi smiled as he quickly kissed her forehead.

"Morning to y'all too. I currently hate the world right now so please forgive me if I'm not in the most chippers of moods." She groaned as she swallowed the pills.

Atem nodded to her but his thoughts were still on Joey. While he hoped Joey's reasoning for punching Yugi was something silly like Rebecca said, he knew there had to be more.

A ringing went off that made Rebecca cringe. She slowly took her phone out and handed it to Yugi.

"Hello?" Yugi greeted. "Marik? What is it…? You…You two found something…? Oh…ok. Before you go have you heard anything from Joey...? Didn't think so. Well, see you guys soon I guess." Yugi hung up and looked back to the group. "Bakura and Marik are on their way. Apparently, they might have found something to help you contact that afterlife."

"Really?!" Rebecca squeaked. Atem shot up from his slouched position.

"Yes, they say they will need Seto for this and that they have already contacted him. They doubt he will help though, so that's why they wanted a group meeting. Or I think that's what he said. You know how hard it is to understand Marik when he talks fast." Yugi shrugged.

* * *

It wasn't long until Marik and Bakura were at the Muto residence. AJ and Chell had woken up at this point and while AJ wanted to stay downstairs to help with his father's new black eye, his parents convinced him to stay upstairs. Good, Atem thought. Best not to get more innocent people involved in all this. Chell stayed down with the group, sitting on her mother's lap. They were all sitting around the kitchen table with Bakura leading the discussion.

"So, contacting the afterlife… Atem has suggested trying to reach out to one of his family members in the afterlife to get information faster." Bakura said to the surrounding group. "Now I'll admit when I heard this plan originally from Yugi I thought Atem was simply on too many painkillers. I have looked into the afterlife for many years, and while I do believe I have some sort of connection too it, and I've never found anything concrete about sending a message to that place-"

"You were right about me being on too many painkillers last night." Atem cut in. "What seemed like a great plan then now seems a great deal… trickery. But I know it's possible." It was true that his plan didn't sound the sanest, then again was anything this group ever did sane?

"I agree wholeheartedly with you Atem." Bakura said. "It was when I was a little soberer, I started to really think about this plan. Then I thought about the times in the past we've had brushes with the afterlife. One big one that comes to my mind is when the Dartz had taken Yugi's soul and Atem found a way to summon him in the California desert." Bakura explained. Another coughing fit started from Atem. He tried to forget about that week in California as much as he could. After Atem got control of his coughing Bakura continued.

"Remembering that made me look through my occult books to learn about that place in California. See if we could use anything from it." Bakura then gestured to Marik who was placing a large stack of books on the table. Bakura smiled at Marik then turned back to the group.

"Now most of the things in these books are completely false, made up for the fun of it. It's the whole reason I still read books like this. But a few pages of truth do exist. Now, where was it…? Err, while I look for it, Atem, can you explain how you and Yugi got back here from the afterlife?" Bakura asked as he started flipping through ripped and yellow pages.

"Oh." Atem paused as all eyes were on him. "Yugi, you remember that leader that helped us figure out that we had to recreate the ceremonial battle? He talked about how you could get anywhere with a combination of a Power and a Force strong enough. Including through the afterlife barrier." Atem explained.

"Power and Force? Aren't they the same thing?" Rebecca asked.

"Not exactly. Ah, here it is." Bakura said as he read a page in his shredded book. "Power, in the underworld terminology, refers to pure strength. Such as a punch or a blast from a magical item. Force is something more spiritual, the left-over negativity from dead souls have a Force. Your connections to others have a Force, be it small. If this said Force is magnified, say in an emotional argument, this Force can be as strong as any punch or blast."

"So, combining these two can get you across the barrier?" Téa asked.

"If done right, yes. Think, Atem's duel with Yugi in the California desert. It had Power from the magic that land naturally had, plus Atem's Force over losing Yugi. That combination allowed Yugi's spirit to be summoned from the underworld. There was also the other time that-" Marik gently laid a hand on Bakura's shoulder.

"Your rambling about the occult again." Marik smiled.

"Right! Excuse me. I just haven't had a lot of people to talk about this with. Anyway, while I was reading this, I was getting worried we would have to go to California or something, then this book references another book. I actually remember reading the book it referenced a long time ago. That book actually talked about sending a message to the afterlife using the exact method Atem just talked about. I have read hundreds of thousands of ways to contact the afterlife in libraries full of books. But this one actually referred specifically to using Force and Power. This plus hearing Yugi explain how he got back to the world of the living last night made me realize that the method that the book talked about was most likely real. Add on the weakened barrier and I think we can do it!"

"That's great! We just follow the instructions in this book and we have it." Yugi smiled. He then noticed Bakura's and Marik's faces and his smile fell. "There's a catch isn't there?"

"Well…" Marik began.

"It's one of the books Sector Security and KaibaCorp confiscated." Bakura blurted. The room went dead silent.

"That's why you guys contacted Kaiba." Rebecca breathed.

"We thought that maybe this time since we only wanted that one page instead of an entire book, he would do it." Marik said.

"We haven't heard back from him." Bakura sighed.

"It was worth a shot but we should have known better. We've all tried in the past to get Kaiba to give us those confiscated books. All to no avail, even when he knew we were looking for information to help Atem." Marik shook his head. "And this is why we wanted a group meeting. We have the information, just what do we do with it?"

The room remained silent as everyone thought.

"Maybe we could… no… maybe…" Rebecca said as she tried to think of a plan. It was then that a beep went off on Yugi's phone.

"It's Joey." Yugi breathed. He had sent a video to only Yugi. Everyone crowded around as Yugi played it. It was a video of the Muto kitchen this morning, with Atem badly singing.

"How dare he," Atem growled as everyone tried to muffle their laughter. Rebecca then took the phone from Yugi and started typing things into it.

"What are you doing?" Yugi asked.

"Joey never activated his privacy features. He really should get on that." She said as she handed the phone back. It showed a map with a red dot in one of New Domino's parks. "He was there when he sent the video."

"Really?! I have to hurry if I'm going to catch him." Yugi declared as he got up and threw on a coat.

"We're coming with you," Rebecca said but Yugi stopped her from getting up.

"You can't go alone Yugi," Marik said.

"No, I think It'll be best if only I'm there. I want to honestly talk to him, just us two." Yugi stated. There was no room for negotiations in his voice.

"We'll try to figure things out here then. Please be safe." Rebecca said as she looked out the curtains to see that it had started to lightly snow. It was much too early in the year for snow

"Don't worry. I'll bring him back safe and sound." Yugi smiled at the group. Atem wanted to fight him on this. Make Yugi at least take him too, but Yugi had made up his mind. Of all the lessons Yugi had learned from Atem, standing his ground became the most annoying.

* * *

Outside, as Yugi ran to his small work car. Gandora came lumbering over as soon as she saw her master. He didn't so much as give her a sideways glance. With a huff, she tried to block the way out, but Yugi knew he could just drive through her.

"You can come if you want, but it won't be for a duel. It's very important that I don't get sidetracked. I have to find Joey." Yugi said. Gandora nodded and let out a roar that only a few could hear. She spread her wings and lifted off into the air.


	29. No Need to Panic

Seto adjusted his jacket as he surveyed out his office window. His coat looked like the famous white one he had worn at Battle City. This one, however, had a big difference, it's temperature control. His scientists had given him odd looks when he ordered this nearly thousand-dollar coat that could perfectly control his body temperature all those years ago. Yet, if they had learned anything working under him, it was not to question Seto Kaiba. It worked perfectly and kept that part of his curse at bay. All with only a small chip attached to his collar. As long as it was there it would work better than any AC or heater, and with the weather he saw outside, he would need it.

"Mr. Kaiba." Seto turned towards his office door. There stood his replacement Roland, Risa Kageyama. "Mr. Goodwin is here to speak to you."

'Again? Didn't that man have other things to do?'

"Let him in." Kaiba sat down at his desk and looked at his computer. He had many messages but only one stood out to him. It was from Bakura. Seto raised an eyebrow and clicked the message.

It was asking for more books from the vault, of course. That group didn't talk to him unless they wanted something. Seto was about to delete the message when he noticed that he wasn't asking for a whole book, just a page.

"Hello, Kaiba." Goodwin's voice took Seto's attention from the message.

"Greetings Goodwin. What can I do for you?" Kaiba greeted flatly.

"Cold day isn't it? It's only November and I'm already getting my winter wear out." Goodwin smiled as he took off his coat.

"I can get that for you, Mr. Goodwin," Mokuba said as he ran in. He quickly hung up his own coat and took Goodwin's. Mokuba then took off his glove and reached out for Goodwin's. He politely declined, keeping his gloves on. Seto noted that Goodwin, no matter the weather, never took his gloves off.

"Hello to you too younger Kaiba. How's your wife doing?" Goodwin asked.

"Oh, very well. We just got our first ultrasound back. The baby looks great and she couldn't be happier about it." Mokuba smiled. He then walked to his brother's side. Seto knew that Mokuba's smile was fake, he disliked Goodwin just as much as his older brother did. He was just better at hiding it.

"That's great! I won't keep you long then. I simply thought I should be the one to tell you the news. It's actually about my old work position."

Seto's hands balled into fists under the table. News from Goodwin was never good.

"Is it about the Ener-D reactor?" Mokuba asked.

"Yes, it is indeed about the reactor. Now I trust you two have it working perfectly and most importantly, safely. I think it's great that you were able to move past the disaster the first one caused and try again. Most people would have given up but because of your determination our city now has safe lasting energy."

"Get to the point, Goodwin," Seto growled.

"Yes please, our reactor wasn't even the main problem. It was an earthquake and tsunami that caused our last reactor to explode." Mokuba added. Seto internally flinched but outwardly he didn't move.

"I see. What I am trying to say is, while I completely trust KaibaCorp with it, the New Domino government does not. They want the whole energy facility turned over to the city, including the R.R.D department. They decided it in a council meeting this morning." Seto stood straight up as Mokuba gasped.

"The Ener-D tower is our private property! Why weren't we told about this meeting?!" Mokuba argued.

"I do not know. Maybe it's something you can sue them over later. Either way, the council all came together with a famous senator that had been working on the project for a while. They believe it is best for the public's safety that a reactor with a history for mass destruction to not be run by a gaming and virtual reality company."

"They can't do that! It's like saying we can't self-manufacture the batteries for our duel disks. Seto, you have to stop them!" Mokuba shouted. Seto was about to object when Goodwin cut in.

"Duel disk batteries don't destroy thousands of lives when they get hit with bad weather."

Seto fell back into his chair. His body's dull static made it hard to think. He had no argument. Anything he tried to fight this with would be countered with thousands of graves.

It's your fault. You can't fix this.

"I'll start to talk to my scientists down there." Kaiba sighed while he rubbed his forehead. Mokuba took a step back from Seto while shaking his head.

"Good, we'll be working with you too to try and make this as seamless as we can," Goodwin said as he stretched out his hand and shook both theirs. He walked through the door where his clown-like lackey was waiting for him. Seto waited for the door to close before he turned back to Bakura's message.

"What a creep. Why in the world did you make Atem's mother his half-sister?" Mokuba asked as he too looked over the email with Seto.

"She fit the role we needed and I already knew her living family. It was better to connect him with people I knew then take a chance on a stranger." Seto explained, but he knew there was more to it than that.

"So, he needs only a page from that book? Haven't we already told him no on this? Why does he keep asking? Even Atem's stopped asking at this point." Mokuba moaned. Seto remained silent. "You're not actually going to do it, are you? I mean, I dislike Goodwin too and would love to ruin one of his 'books,' but those books were given to us by their actual owners. It would be a breach of our contract to give it to him. And right now, a breach of contract is the last thing we need if we are going to fight this Ener-D takeover. You were just giving lip service to Goodwin, right? You're not actually going to give up the reactor?"

"I'm going out Mokuba, you're in charge," Seto said as he stood up and walked to the door.

"Ok, but where are you going?"

"Do not tell anyone that I am out-?" As Seto opened the door he found Goodwin and his lackey right outside it.

"What are you guys still doing here?" Mokuba asked as he squeezed past Seto so he could stand in front of the two and block their escape. The only thing Seto liked about Mokuba's growth spurt was that he could threaten almost anyone with his sheer height alone.

"I got an important call as soon as I came out of your office and answered it here. We will get out of your way now that I've finished it." Goodwin said. Seto didn't know if they were close enough to the door to hear what he and Mokuba were talking about. He had to hope they weren't.

"Of course, you first." Mokuba moved aside so the two could walk. The next movements Seto did not see clearly. It looked like the rug around clown's feet has bunched up or maybe Mokuba had purposefully stuck his foot out. Either way, the lackey stumbled forward. In his surprise, he grabbed Seto's collar and pulled him forward too. Seto's weak body was not ready for the sudden motion and he fell to the ground.

"Are you ok?" Goodwin asked. He put out a hand for Seto but the CEO refused to use it.

"Fine, just get out of here," Kaiba growled. The clown apologized and the two walked away, Kaiba made sure this time that they were gone before he continued to the elevator.

Seto left Mokuba in his office and went to the building's underground safes. He put in the combination and opened a small steel door to find stacks and stacks of books. He looked through them until he found the one called "Magic of Ancient South American Civilizations." It was a history book disguised as an occult book so kids would read it. Yet, Bakura wanted it and more importantly, Goodwin didn't want him to have it. Seto flipped through until he found the page: How to Contact the Afterlife.

He was crazy for doing this. He and his company would be in big trouble if someone found out. KaibaCorp had promised the owners of these materials to keep them safe in their vaults where no one but the owners could touch them. It had part of KaibaCorp's community service after the Zero Reverse to give away free vault security to the public. Seto didn't care. It really wasn't his company anymore, was it? If they could take away his reactor then what else could they take from him? Seto ripped out the page and closed the vault. He tucked the page into his coat pocket and got back into the elevator.

As Seto waited he felt the page in his pocket. The public's trust… The public really didn't know how much KaibaCorp was at fault for the Zero Reverse. They only knew a natural disaster caused the city's destruction. Those in higher power did know that the reactor caused most the damage (thus the community service work) but they still thought it wasn't KaibaCorp's fault and instead an earthquake's. Which is why there wasn't much of a fight to rebuild the reactor. That is also why no one blamed Seto, not even Mokuba knew the truth.

Before the first Ener-D exploded its lead scientist, Dr. Fudo had tried to stop to project, calling it too dangerous. Kaiba had replaced him with someone more willing. Now Fudo was dead, he had a family. They all had families.

It's your fault.

Seto's elevator arrived at the floor for the garage.

"Get my limo. I have to leave now!" Seto ordered.

"I'm sorry sir. There's been a crash at the garage entrance. No one was hurt but the whole place is blocked." A sniveling worker said.

Seto cursed under his breath and traveled to the ground floor of the building. What had been a light dusting earlier now was a true snowstorm. He was trying to be discreet so he couldn't use his helicopter or his jet. No cab would work in weather like this either. Seto felt his coat. It could keep his temperature constant in anything, he had tested it himself. He buttoned his coat and headed out. What he didn't realize was that the chip to make the coat work was currently in the hands of a human Crass Clown.

* * *

Yugi parked his car. It had become a true snowstorm but he didn't care. He looked out over the now grey park. Gandora's crash here during her tour of the city still hadn't quite been fixed. Only one tree stood where there used to be a dozen.

"You really are the dragon of destruction sometimes." Yugi sighed as Gandora landed beside him. "Let's find Joey."

Gandora let out a huff as her response. Yugi ran through the park hoping that there was some sign of his friend. He was almost tempted to hop on Gandora for a better look around, but if there was anyone else here, they would have a lot of questions concerning a levitating King of Games.

Gandora let out a roar, stopping Yugi in his tracks. She was laying on top of a gazebo Yugi swore he already checked. Nonetheless, inside was a blonde-haired man sitting on a bench.

"Joey!" Yugi yelled as he ran to the structure. As he got inside the gazebo Joey looked up from the floor and gave a weak smile to Yugi, avoiding looking at his black eye.

"I can't believe you actually came out here Yuge. Have you've seen the weather?" Joey chuckled. Yugi slowed his pace as he got closer to Joey, almost expecting him to bolt. Joey remained sitting, so Yugi took the seat next to him.

"While this weather is strange what I find strangest is you, Joey. What happened?" Yugi asked. Joey turned his gaze back to the floor. He was twisting a promise ring on his finger. While he and Mai had never gotten officially married, they had been together like they were. That ring had been the representation of their promise to each other.

"I-I'm so sorry for last night Yugi. I just don't know what came over me." Joey said. "You know I'd never mean to hurt you, it was just… You started talkin' about the afterlife so casually and how you met everyone and didn't tell me…" Joey went silent. "…I was just so alone dose ten months… Serenity…Mai…Tristan…

"I'm pathetic Yugi. I couldn't even get the courage up to face everyone dis morning. Seeing Atem's eyes in the kitchen made it real. Dat's why I sent the video only to you. I knew Rebecca could track it and you would want to be the only one to meet me... Dis sounds crazier with every followin' sentence. What's wrong with me?"

Yugi looked around for an idea of what to say. The only thing he could do was look helplessly at Gandora who was sticking her head in from the roof.

She shrugged, her species thought emotions other than rage and hunger were a sign of weakness. She was different and accepted those emotions, (The whole reason she chose Yugi as her master) but that didn't mean she was any better at understanding what to do about them.

"He's one of your beloveds, right? Make sure he knows he's beloved?" Gandora mentally guessed. Yugi took in a deep breath, maybe that is what he had to do.

"Joey… I think it's time I apologize." Yugi eventually said. This made Joey jerk his head towards Yugi.

"For what?! You're the one with a black eye!" Joey said. This made Yugi chuckle.

"You are one of my closest friends, in fact, you're my second oldest friend behind Téa. I know you always have my back. Lately, though, I haven't been returning the favor.

"I don't know what came over you either, in fact, I haven't had a clue on what's wrong with you since I was gone. You still smile and say you're ok, but I know it's acting. I decided to leave you alone about it, thinking I already had too much to worry about. Now I see I was being too passive. I knew you were unhappy and did nothing about it. I apologize for that." Joey's eyes were wide and his jaw slightly slack as he looked to Yugi.

"Are ya serious?" Joey asked.

"Very, I am not letting you do this alone anymore. Whatever is bothering you, I am going to be there. We all are in fact. We've all been reeling from the Zero Reverse and that has let a lot of things fall to the wayside. But now we are together. We are not letting you do this alone anymore." Yugi said with a kind smile. Even with Yugi's gentleness, there was still that ever-present determination of his. Joey couldn't help but feel at peace knowing that his best friend meant what he said. This was enough to get a true smile out of him.

"Thank you, Yugi."

"Now kiissssss." Gandora mental said.

"No! Joey is not a beloved I kiss!" Yugi quickly shot back.

"What now?" Joey laughed. He could guess who Yugi was talking to but it didn't make him yelling at the ceiling after another friendship speech any less funny.

"It's just Gandora. The Gandora species only know mating partners, hatchlings, and enemies. She's… slowly getting this idea friendship down." Yugi sighed. A strong wind then blew in causing both Joey and Yugi to shiver.

"Let's get somewhere warm Yuge. I still don't know why I brought you all the way out here. It just felt right at the time." Joey said as he got up.

"Hey as I said, I'll have your back no matter where you are. Even if it's in the middle of a whiteout." The wind blew by again. "But I would prefer it if we were somewhere warm. Let's continue this conversation elsewhere. Do you mind coming back to my house? Everyone is there and will be worried about you." Yugi asked. Joey didn't answer immediately. Yugi was about to suggest maybe going to Joey's house when he heard a dragon's roar. Gandora heard it too and she immediately perked up.

"That sounds like a Blue-Eyes!" She gasped.

"Aren't there only two Blue-Eye spirits that can still come to this dimension?" Yugi asked.

"Correct, that means it's your beloved-enemy's dragon. That roar sounds like a call for help." Gandora said as she looked towards the city.

"What's going on Yuge?" Joey asked eyeing around for danger.

"One of Seto's Blue-Eyes called for help. By the fact you couldn't hear the roar means he hasn't been summoned in a duel. We have to see what's wrong." Yugi said as he raced to his car. Joey got into the passager seat and Yugi started the car. They followed Gandora the best they could through the city streets. She would roar every once in a while, and the Blue-Eyes would respond. Using that the group found themselves in a back alley by the docks that hadn't quite been fixed from the Zero Reverse. The car couldn't drive farther so the two jumped out and followed Gandora.

"The car looks like it's stuck. Do you have any idea where you are goin' Yuge?"

"No, but Gandora knows."

"Great, followin' invisible creatures in the middle of the weirdest snowstorm of the century. Just a normal day with Yugi Muto." Joey joked.

Once they were in a warmer place Yugi would have a much longer talk with Joey but now they had to focus. Seto's Blue-Eyes White Dragons were just as proud as their master. There used to be a third female Blue-Eyes that would reign in the other two males but she disappeared when Atem went back to the afterlife. The remaining two became much haughtier with her spirit gone. Meaning if they were calling for help, it was bad.

* * *

It's your fault

Seto felt to coldness slowly creep in. Unlike before his curse, temperature change for him started at the core. It felt like his very heart was becoming ice as the chill crept to his extremities. It was too late. He was already closer to the Mutos then his company. He was surrounded by warehouses with not a soul in sight. Seto reached into his pocket. Of course, he forgot his cell phone back on his desk.

It's your fault. You deserve this.

Seto shook his head and kept one foot moving in front of the other. He was good at focusing on one objective and letting everything else fall to the wayside. He was going to get this page to them if it killed him. Everything around him was quickly becoming indistinguishable from the storm. Seto knew it was bad when he started to see bright blue in the white. What looked like two Blue-Eyes White Dragons floated above him. They seemed almost… worried.

You're falling again, Seto. You're falling back into insanity. When will you start kidnapping again for a simple card? You've already killed almost everyone in Domino city and got away with it scot-free.

Maybe Atem will have to fight you again.

Maybe this time he'll kill you

You deserve it.

Seto hurt leg could no longer hold his weight and he fell into the snow. He did not try to get up. The dragons landed beside him and looked like they were trying to lift him. Their claws went right through him.

It's your fault. It's your fault. It's your fault. It's your fault. It's your fault. It's your fault. It's your fault. It's your fault. It's your fault. It's your fault. It's your fault.

"Seto!" Kaiba slowly lifted his head and squinted through the storm. Two figures ran towards him.

"Seto! What are you doing out here?!" Yugi gasped as he bent down to Seto.

"He doesn't look good. We have to get him somewhere warm now!" Joey then reached down and pulled Seto's arm around his shoulder. Yugi did the same and they slowly lifted him up. Seto didn't fight them. Instead, he kept his eyes on the two Blue-Eyes. They stayed as close to him as they could. They never left.

"Please stay with us master. You are stronger than this storm." Seto thought he heard in his head. He really was going crazy.

It's your fau- "Stay with us, Master."

* * *

Yugi and Joey soon found an open warehouse and just about threw themselves inside it. It wasn't exactly warm but it was better than being in a full out blizzard and it was closer than the car.

"The owners won't mind if we borrow dis place, right?" Joey said as he re-closed the door.

"I don't think anyone's been in here for a while," Yugi said as he looked around the abandoned space. The two then moved Kaiba to a corner and placed both their coats around him. He was violently shivering and not responding to anything they tried.

"Any idea where we are right now?" Joey asked as he looked through nailed wood boards on the window into the complete whiteness.

"No, I really don't. Gandora! Find us a street sign or something so we can tell the paramedic where we are." Yugi ordered through the window. Gandora nodded and flew out into the storm. It didn't affect her other than her ability to see. She almost wanted one of the Blue-Eyes to come with her but they were too focused on Seto. They had managed to fit into the warehouse and curled around the CEO. If only Seto could see them, then maybe they could have shared body temperature.

"What were ya doin' out dere Kaiba?!" Joey eventually yelled. He had been pacing trying to reach emergency services and finally got too frustrated with his old cell phone.

"Did you crash? I've never seen you travel the city in anything less than a limo." Yugi tried. He was kneeling next to Seto. He wanted to get closer to him but every time he tried the Blue-Eyes would snap at him.

Seto eyes briefly glanced at Yugi. Slowly, with shaky hands, Seto pulled something out of his pocket. He didn't have the strength to hand it to Yugi. One Blue-Eyes grabbed the paper with the tip of his tail and pushed it into Yugi's hand.

"Did the wind blow that or...?" Joey asked after seeing a flying paper come out of Kaiba's pocket.

"It's the page we need." Yugi breathed as he unfolded it. Joey ran over and looked over Yugi's shoulder.

"Kaiba you idiot! You came all the way out here for this?! You could have just sent a text!" Joey snapped. A small smile spread across Seto's face but it quickly disappeared in his shivering.

"S-s."

"What is it? Seto!?" Yugi asked. Seto pulled farther into his pile of coats.

"Ok, dis is not the time to panic. We'll keep Kaiba warm in here until Gandora gets back with a street sign. Den we'll try the phone again. She's still out, right? What I would give to actually see dese things." Joey said as he walked over to Seto. The Blue-Eyes tried to snap at him but they passed harmlessly through him. He sat next to Kaiba and pulled him close. Yugi remained still. A combination of the angry dragons and seeing Joey hug Seto stopped him.

"Get over here Yugi. We have to keep him warm." Joey said, trying to hide his own uncomfortableness. "No need to panic."

"I-I'm sorry," Seto mumbled. This froze both men in place. "I'm so-so sorry Joey. I'm the re-reason you don't have a family anymore. I-I am the reason f-for everything. It's all my fault."

"…"

"Did… Did Seto just honestly apologize to me? No sarcasm or backhanded remarks?"

"…He called you Joey instead of Wheeler…"

"…"

Everyone proceeded to panic.


	30. You Sure About This?

"Are you sure about this Mr. Kaiba?" Risa asked Mokuba as they continued to try and drive through the storm.

"My brother is out here somewhere. We have to find him!" Mokuba said as he turned back to the window of the snowplow. An hour after Seto left, Mokuba had started to worry. A secretary soon told him that she had seen Seto stomp out into the storm and that had been back when she could still see through the weather.

"Have you checked with any of Mr. Seto's acquaintances? Maybe the Mutos?"

"I already called them. Rebecca said that she hadn't seen him. Yugi and Joey are missing too apparently. If things work out the way they usually do then those three are together. Keep your eyes peeled."

They had been looking for thirty minutes now. Things were starting to look as bleak as the storm around them. Then Mokuba briefly saw something in the distance. It was huge and black.

"What is that?!" Mokuba gasped. He rubbed his eyes and the shape disappeared in the blizzard. Risa looked away from driving to see what Mokuba had yelled about. She saw the shape too and immediately knew what it was.

"Isn't Mr. Muto's trump card a Gandora, sir?" Risa asked.

"Yes, why bring it up?" He asked, assuring himself that the shape he had seen was an illusion of the storm. As he did that, Risa pulled out an old, wrinkled, generation one duel monster card. Soon the spirit of Violet Hecate appeared beside her.

"Go, find out what that dragon is doing out here!" Risa commanded. Mokuba hadn't noticed her command thanks to the loudness of the wind. The duel witch nodded and flew out into the storm.

Risa remembered when she got that card. Years after losing to Seto and Yugi over it, the CEO had found her again. Her sisters were gone and she had been alone. He offered her a low-ranking job, he only wanted her because she was good at duel monsters. His only payment for the first five years' work was the card. She took the job without a second thought. That had been fifteen years ago.

The witch came back and spoke into Risa's mind.

"I know where they are, sir." Risa said as she yanked the steering wheel.

Mokuba gasped as Risa turned the snowplow as quickly as it would allow.

…

Atem's fever was nearly gone now along with his cough. He still wouldn't call himself healthy but it was better than when he had been trapped in the sick blanket. This was probably why he could pace by the front door for hours and not get tired. The first hour of the storm he had tried to distract himself by writing out the message he wanted for the afterlife. He had done that three times, just in case each message was somehow destroyed. Even after all that time, Yugi was still not back.

"It can't be helped now. He's probably huddled up in Joey's house trying to wait out the storm just like us." Rebecca said as she continued typing away on her laptop.

"This storm is not normal," Atem growled, this time managing to make it sound angry instead of just a bad cough like it had been yesterday.

"Or it could just be a very early storm. We can't do anything about it now so try not to let it bother you." Rebecca replied.

"Nothing seems to bother you right now. How are you just sitting there working while your husband is out there?"

Rebecca flinched at his words. Atem immediately recognized his anger and apologized.

"It's fine. I'm just as worried as you are. At the beginning of my marriage, I would have been pacing right alongside you. But over a decade of dealing with Yugi made me realize, he is one of the strongest people on this planet." Rebecca said. "If I could I'd be out there looking for him, but since I can't, I better work on something else. Or else I might be making a rut in the new rug like you" She chuckled as Atem looked down at his well-worn pacing path. He stopped pacing and let out a big breath.

"What are you working on anyway?" He asked, trying to distract himself.

"Final checks on the coding for our new video game. You want to check it out?"

Despite being a different person Atem still had many of Yugi's mannerisms, like the light that flickered in his eyes when it came to games. It made Rebecca smile to see the teen nearly vault the couch arm to get a better look at her laptop.

"Absolutely." He sat right next to Rebecca and stared at the sprawl of code he couldn't even begin to understand. As Rebecca described the mechanics, she was prepared for the blank looks most people gave her. Instead, Atem's eyes remained focused. He asked many questions and remained interested in what she had to say. It was then Rebecca realized this was her first full conversation with just Atem. She also felt no dark aura from the pharaoh. He was just a friendly face… a friend. Not some betrayer or monster. A friend.

While Atem didn't have as big of a realization he felt the change too. After getting past her bout of over protectiveness after the attack, Rebecca had become much friendlier towards him. Atem also couldn't forget, she had been the one to defend him and stay by his side when he "died" back at the construction site. That was something that forged a connection no amount of bad feelings could fight.

"…And this is for a mechanic called effort values or EVs for short. It's is really important to train right for the competitive play. You can use bottle caps to- My phone!" Both nearly threw themselves at Rebecca's ringing phone. After a bit of a tussle, Rebecca answered it.

"Hello? Yugi?! …You what? …At the hospital! Again?!" This got Téa. Bakura, and Marik to race into the living room. They had been in the kitchen thinking up plans. They were all crowding Rebecca trying to hear the phone.

"Oh, for the love of Ra…" Rebecca sighed as she pulled herself out of the crowd. "You're on speaker now Yugi. Tell everyone what happened." Rebecca said as she clicked a button on the phone and held it out.

"Oh, well I found Joey and Seto. We had to hang out in a warehouse for a while before Mokuba found us. We're at the hospital now. Before you panic, we're both fine, if not a little cold. Would you believe we actually found Seto in the storm?" Yugi said. Atem could tell Yugi was hiding worry in his voice. He could also tell that Rebecca heard it too.

"We could. When we heard that Seto was missing we all kind of expected you three to gravitate towards each other." Bakura chuckled.

"It's happened enough at this point that I think I can make a scientific theory about it." Rebecca added quickly, lightening the mood.

Yugi chuckled briefly. "I'm sure the world of science would be excited for another publication of yours Bec..." Everyone came closer to the phone. When Yugi trailed off they all knew whatever he was about to say was not good.

"As I said Joey and I are fine, but Seto is not doing so well. He's the reason we are at the hospital." It was like someone had opened a window. All the good atmosphere was sucked out of the room and replaced with a chill.

"What happened to him?" Atem asked.

"Dehydration, malnutrition, lack of sleep, but Mokuba keeps trying to tell the doctors that it's normal for Seto. What is abnormal, even for Mokuba, is his brother's hypothermia. It's bad... He's 'stable' now but I wouldn't call him healthy."

"Isn't dat how he always is though?" Everyone got even closer to the phone when they heard Joey's voice in the background.

"Joey! We're glad you're ok." Téa smiled.

"You have explaining to do bub," Rebecca growled. Atem echoing that growl.

"I know, I know. I'll explain everything later k?" Joey said.

"Don't worry guys. I've already talked a great deal with him. We had tons of time to do that when we were trapped in the warehouse."

"After we finished running up and down the walls panicking that is," Joey added.

"Warehouse?! Panicking?!"

"It's a long story."

* * *

The storm subsided enough during the evening for Yugi and Joey to get back to the Muto house. They knew it was safe to travel when the hospital suddenly filled with reporters and bloggers. They were clamoring for both Yugi's and Seto's condition (utterly ignoring Joey). Another reason for Joey and Yugi to be indebted to Mokuba, first for saving them from that storm, then for getting them home fast.

"You ready Joey? I'm sure they can take you to your house if you're still uncomfortable." Yugi asked as he got out of the snowplow.

"Nah, I gotta do dis sooner or later. Might as well do it when everyone's still happy at the fact dat we're alive." Joey said as he too hopped out of the snowplow.

Gandora leaped off the snowplow roof. She had never left Yugi's side once she had led Mokuba to their warehouse. With them safe she trotted off to find a new bed in the snow-covered yard. She needed some time to process everything, sadly Yugi and Joey didn't have the same luxury of time. They had to deal with things right after the other.

While it had stopped snowing earlier in the night, it was still freezing. Yugi and Joey ran across the yard and just about broke down the front door to get to the warmth.

"Anyone home?" Yugi asked as he opened the front door. He was immediately tackled by the usual group, mainly his son and Rebecca, but this time Téa and Bakura joined the hug. Joey chuckled but was soon pulled into the hug too.

"Good to see you all." Yugi laughed as he got up and shook the snow off his head.

"So, where is the page?" Atem asked, trying to hold back his need to hug Yugi too. (The best way he found to hide those embarrassing urges was to lean against something and cross his arms. Thankfully the wall provided a great leaning point.)

"It's right here," Joey said as he produced the page Seto had nearly killed himself to get to them from a coat pocket. Bakura soon took it and looked over it with Marik. As they did that, Yugi asked AJ to go upstairs. It was too late for his son to be up. After a bit of arguing AJ grumbled but went up.

"This is exactly what we were looking for. I wonder what Seto had to sacrifice to get this?" Bakura breathed.

"For one thing, his sanity. When we were with him, he seemed to believe the Zero Reverse was his fault. He even started to apologize to me about it. ME of all people."

This immediately made Atem look up. He had looked through (and broke) Kaiba enough times to know what the CEO would and would not do. Verbally apologizing to Joey was high on the list of never ever do.

"As I said he's stable now but he was in no talking condition," Yugi said while rubbing the back of his neck. "When we were leaving Mokuba was yelling about how the hospital was filled with idiots. I think they were going to move Seto back home to their private doctor."

"We'll have to deal with him later. We have to focus on our first worry, Joey." Téa said with crossed arms. Everyone turned to the tall blonde. He nervously chuckled. It almost looked like he was going to bolt again. Yugi then put a hand on his shoulder and gave a gentle smile. Joey's posture loosened up as he smiled back at Yugi.

"Ok, I promised an explanation, right?"

* * *

As Bakura and Marik worked on the ritual, Joey talked. He apologized profusely, not just for the night before but just about every wrongdoing he had done the last year. He then talked about how unhappy he had been since the Zero Reverse. Never going out, always fighting, not taking care of himself, all things that he had been trying to hide from the others.

"I didn't want to bother you guys since you all had your own deaths from the Zero Reverse to mourn. I was trying to be the strong one so I bottled up everything. I guess I bottled up so many emotions for so long dat dey ended up explodin' on Yugi. Have I said how sorry I am for dat?"

"Many times. If you keep up this pace you might even break Atem's record he set nineteen years ago for apologies in a single day."

"I wouldn't go that far, Yuge."

Eventually, it was decided that Joey should try and get some counseling. To help get those emotions out in a healthier way. Everyone agreed to help any way they could. Not just for Joey, for any one of their friends. They were there for each other, no one had to be the strong or weak one when they were all together.

After many more apologies and Joey even eventually bursting into tears, it felt like the group had finally gotten somewhere.

"Well this is good. Not just because we reaffirmed our friendship, though that is amazing. But because that means this room now has a lot of Force in it. I was worried about how we were going to produce it. Add on we have a full moon with almost no clouds in the sky tonight. We might as well try to contact the afterlife now." Bakura smiled. This made everyone jump.

"Right now? Is this really the best time with these two just getting back and Seto still sick?" Téa asked. Everyone echoed her surprise.

"It'll be hard to generate this much Force again. It won't stick around long. Might as well use it while we got it." Marik said almost too casually. The others were still very hesitant but they had a first priority. Get Atem back to the afterlife. They were going to keep their promise.

After they were given the all clear, Marik and Bakura started preparing the ceremony detailed in the paper. They began drawing red lines all around the room. It went all along the floor and up the walls to even the ceiling at one point.

"This isn't permanent marker. We swear Rebecca!"

Then they had the others bring in a car jump-starter that was in the back of one of the Muto's cars.

"This will be for the Power. I know it doesn't look like much but we aren't sending a whole person into the afterlife, just a message. If you think about it, this is even more power than the Ancients could make themselves anyways." Marik explained when Atem questioned him about it. "We just need one more thing. We need something that is connected to the spirit you're trying to send this message to."

"Something that's connected…" Atem said as he thought. He didn't have anything left over from the afterlife, the Millennium Puzzle would have been perfect right then. Atem then got an idea and ran upstairs to his room. He pulled out his deck and flipped through it.

"What are you looking for?" AJ asked from his room. He was still grumpy about being kicked out of the adult's conversation and refused to go to sleep.

"The Dark Magician." Atem said as he found the old card. Even when it had no spirit, Atem could still see Mahad's face in its picture. He ran back downstairs and handed the card to Bakura and Marik.

"This is perfect. Now we just need our two magic users. Wow, I thought I'd never say that outside my podcast." Bakura said as Yugi and Atem came up.

"I already texted Jaden. He's in a pillow fort in his hotel room. He says it's fine for us to use the Gentle Darkness for a bit." Yugi said as the two stood on intricate markings that were just drawn on the carpet. Atem couldn't recognize what the symbols were. They did not seem Egyptian, Japanese or English. It made sense it wouldn't be any of those languages yet, Atem still felt like he recognized them. He wished he could see the marking fully. The two had turned off the lights a while ago and the sun was long gone. The only source of light was from the window. For once, the Muto's curtains were pulled aside so the group could see the pale full moon's light stretch across the room. It gave an eerie shadow to the once warm Muto living room.

"Have you already written the message for your friend?" Bakura asked. Atem nodded and pulled out the piece of paper. He had written it in hieroglyphics so none of the others could read it. As he pulled it out the other two copies fell out. Marik chuckled a bit but Bakura thought it was better to be safe than sorry and took the copies too.

"Now this won't permanently send things to the afterlife. It should just send the message long enough for Mahad to read it. Then it will be up to him to respond." Marik said.

"I understand. It will be easier for them to contact us anyways." Atem said. Bakura took the message and the monster card and placed them on top of the car jumper.

"This is both nothing like how I thought this ceremony would go, and at the same time exactly what I expected." Rebecca said. Yugi chuckled and kissed her before she, Téa, and Joey went upstairs.

"It's for their safety. We don't want them getting stuck in the wrong place during the ceremony." Bakura said as he plugged in the jumper to another tangle of wires the two had set up. Yugi looked at the tangle with a bit of hesitation.

"Are you sure about this, guys? I see about a hundred ways this could set my house on fire."

"Sure, sure. I work with these cables all the time to help start dead cars. You got nothing to worry about-!" Marik explained until a wire tripped him. He was thankfully caught by Bakura. It did not make Yugi feel any better.

"This really is a perfect night for this. Fullmoon light is always more powerful." Bakura smiled as he rubbed his hands together. Atem and Yugi glanced at each other.

"Are you sure about this?" Atem asked.

Yugi gave a hesitant, but determined smile. "We have to get you home as quick as we can. If it involves this crazy plan, then yes, I'm ready."

Bakura and Marik then hid behind a couch and gave the brothers the signal. Atem nodded and the two faced towards the moonlight. The Eye of Wadjet appeared on both their foreheads, glowing a brighter gold in the moonlight. The two placed their hands on two drawn circles in front of them. To their surprise, they saw the marker lines start to glow too. Slowly the glowing light moved up the lines, twisting and curving with the designs that were drawn around the room. Atem was finally able to recognize the designs, they were all parts to a large beast, a crimson dragon.

Soon enough the two glowing lines met at the center, right where the car jumper was. The box started to vibrate and glow. Yugi took a tentative step back while still keeping an arm out in front of Atem. Atem noticed the unconscious move from Yugi. It would have made him smile if it wasn't for the fact the box exploded into a puff of smoke right at that moment.

"What was that?!" Yugi gasped as he ran forward.

"That wasn't supposed to happen. I wonder what went wrong?" Bakura said. Marik and Yugi both started debating with Bakura over what had transpired. Atem wasn't paying attention to a word they said.

Atem slowly walked up to the box. It was calling to him. The world seemed to blur around his eyes, he could only focus on the box. The message was still there but it was glowing dimly, along with the card. Atem didn't know what made him do it but he reached out and touched the card.

In a red flash Atem felt himself being thrown forward. It was like he was falling and flying at the same time. Before he could register anything else, it all stopped.

* * *

"Pharaoh? Pharaoh?! Atem!" Atem jolted forward, then groaned. He no longer felt sick but everything around him was as bright as the sun at mid-day.

"My Gods, it is you!" Atem turned to see Mahad standing beside him with tears in his eyes.

"Hey, Mahad. How are you doing?" Atem asked woozily. Everything felt wrong.

"I… Hey? Did you truly just say hey?" Mahad managed to laugh in surprise. As Mahad laughed Atem noticed that his friend was wearing the Millennium Puzzle around his neck.

"You have it now…" Atem, still shaken, tried to reach up to feel the puzzle. It was then he found he had no hand. In fact, most of his body was gone. He looked like he was a ripped picture of Atem, each of the pieces floating in place. This immediately woke him up "What happened?!"

"I do not know. You appeared in front of me in a flash of red light. Are you feeling alright? You must be if you managed a 'hey'." Mahad said as he tried to help Atem up, but found his hands went through any tears in Atem's body, and there were many.

"I feel fine, none of these hurt. It's just the light of the sun that… The sun! The spell, it somehow sent me here instead of the message!" Atem gasped as he managed to jump up.

"What do you mean-?"

"No time Mahad! How is everyone doing? Are the Earthbound Immortals attacking?"

Mahad slowly blinked. He had so many questions for his pharaoh but knew that if this was a spell then Atem did not have long.

"Everyone is as fine as they can be. The Earthbound Immortals are indeed attacking but we have managed to stop them from doing real damage. It has helped that two of their number have seemed to disappear. A red spider, and a violet condor." Mahad explained.

"That's great. We've been trying to find out more about the Earthbound Immortals ourselves. I think if I defeat them, I can come back to the afterlife." Atem quickly said. "You can't give me all the information now since time is short, but I do know that you can get the information faster and more completely then the living ever could. Can you do that Mahad? Connect me or my friends with the information we need to defeat the Earthbound Immortals?"

Mahad took a step back in surprise.

"I will do whatever you ask of me Pharaoh, I…" Mahad stopped and really looked at Atem. "We have missed you Atem. We want you to get back with us but, do you not think it is too soon?" Atem was the one to be surprised this time. How could he come back be too soon? Didn't they want him back? Atem then remembered his nightmare in his "soul room."

"What do you mean?" Atem asked in his calmest tone. He would not let his voice shake. His family would want him back, right?

"Never mind." Mahad said with a wave of his hand. He then put his hand to his chin as he thought. "You defeating this menace would certainly count for saving the world, but…"

"But what?" Atem asked, feeling control of his tone loosen with every word.

"I do not think it is your destiny."

Atem took two steps back from his friend in surprise. "What?"

"Listen to me fully. We have been meeting with the Crimson Dragon often these last few weeks. We don't know if the Zero Reverse caused the Immortals to break out early or if they caused the Zero Reverse. Either way, there are those already destined to defeat the Immortals. They are just not ready at the moment."

"The Signers." Atem breathed. He had forgotten completely about the Signers, thinking that it had to be only him. "What do you propose I do then?"

"I-I do not know. But I will do what you have asked. I will get any information I can and find a way to contact you. It might be a great while though, I hear time in the afterlife and living world is much different."

It felt like someone was gripping Atem's heart, he had also forgotten about the time difference too. He then felt it, it the falling feeling.

"I'm going back soon."

Mahad froze, he looked over Atem one more time and then launched into a hug.

"We will be back together soon." Mahad said. Atem was taken aback since Mahad had never hugged him like this before, but he wasn't going to stop him now. He hugged back to the best of his abilities.

"I'm sorry I left so suddenly. I did not think about how it would hurt you guys." Atem whispered. Mahad pulled back and smiled at the pharaoh.

"You did not hurt us. It would have hurt us more knowing we were the reason you did not get a second adventure with your friends." Atem's eyes widened, which made Mahad smile more. "Are you surprised? All we want is for you to be happy. You have already spent so much of your life saving us. If your happiness means we will not see each other for a little time, we gladly accept that."

Atem wanted to hug his oldest friend once again but he was disappearing too fast. Just then a large blast came from behind and caused an explosion behind Mahad. Before Atem could scream he was gone.

"Atem? Atem?! Yami!" Over him was Yugi, Marik, and Bakura. Atem once again jerked forward. This time he had a body to push him up. Another coughing fit raked his body as Yugi patted his back.

"What happened?!" Yugi gasped.

"I-I went to the afterlife." Atem mumbled after clearing his throat.

"Really? It worked?" Bakura said while excitedly clasping his hands together.

"Yes, they, they don't hate me." Atem said. He then laughed at his own silly worries. He then slowly got up. "Yep, everything's still there," Atem said as he looked over his intact body.

"Still where? Wait…who doesn't hate you?" Yugi worriedly asked.

"It doesn't matter, what does is that we once again have to wait for the information. I forgot that the afterlife is on a different timescale" Atem sighed. This made both Marik and Bakura pull away and groan. Yugi remained by Atem's side, studying him.

"Well, it wasn't for nothing." Yugi said.

"Why do you say that?" Atem asked.

"Because you got something you needed. Something you didn't even know you needed." Yugi had that powerful aura again. Atem shook his head. Did Yugi really have an epiphany about him or could he just read Atem that well? Either way Atem found himself too tired to think on those thoughts long. His family didn't hate him, they never had.

He started to fall forward. Yugi immediately caught him and laid him down on the couch.

* * *

"Tell me everything that comes to your mind with this next question, and I mean everything. Is it true Atem is trying to fight the Earthbound Immortals?" In front of Mahad was a massive glowing red dragon. This dragon was nothing like the Dragon of Ra or even Slifer. This dragon god almost did not look physical. It was made of fiery, cosmic energy. Only barely kept together in the shape of a winged dragon for the sake of the fragile mortals it worked with. Its wings alone were bigger than most duel monster dragons. Mahad truly felt insignificant beside it, especially when it's piercing golden eyed rested upon him.

The first time Mahad had seen those eyes was when the Crimson Dragon had been in human form. It then looked like an unassuming human male, even its gold eyes were toned down to brown. The dragon then had been nothing more than the Paradise Leader for The People of the Stars. It apparently liked being a painfully average looking human and was planning to enjoy another twenty years of "simple mortal worries." Then the Zero Reverse happened. The Crimson Dragon was not happy to be forced into its true form early by its old enemies.

"Yes, or he's at least trying to get information on them. He thinks defeating them will count for saving the world again." Mahad said. "I am simply surprised he is trying. I thought we were not going to see him for at least another fifty years." Mahad continued. The dragon did ask for everything.

The dragon leaned back in thought. The dragon's tail was wrapped around Mahad to help heal him. That blast from the Immortals' shadow creatures got him good. Mahad felt embarrassed that this great god had to spend its precious time healing him, he should have been more aware.

"Really? You thought he was going to choose to stay in the living world?" The dragon asked. The Crimson Dragon's voice was the same kind voice that came from its humble human form, yet Mahad knew that this was not its true voice. Its true roar could make even the bravest man quaver like a wilting leaf.

"Not forever, he would never abandon us. I simply thought he would use the time to grow up with his modern friends. I know that has always been a dream of his, even if he would never admit it." Mahad said. His wounds were finally healed and he was able to stand up. The dragon pulled back his tail then looked over the mage. Mahad stood firm but did not make eye contact with the great beast.

"If he actually managed to do it, he would be sent back here for stopping them. I doubt he could defeat them alone, however. That is why I have already chosen Signers to do it. It is their destiny, not his."

"I thought so… I can assure you that he meant no offense with his plan." Mahad quickly said.

"I know. In fact, having Atem there is a good thing. As long as he does not die anytime soon, he will be a great fighter against the Earthbound Immortals."

"Die, sir?"

"What we need is a way to lock these Immortals away for a little longer. Just until my Signers are ready." The Crimson Dragon's burning eyes then rested on the golden pyramid around Mahad's neck.

"Pharaoh Atem locked himself away in that, correct? All so he could lock away Zorc too?" The great dragon asked.

"Yes, he did. He lost his memories and sanity in the process. Thankfully it was only temporary that time." Mahad said as he grasped the puzzle.

"That time?" The dragon asked.

"For others that have done a similar thing… it was permanent." Mahad explained. The dragon stared at the puzzle, then it shook its head like it was flicking away an annoying thought.

"I need that puzzle."

Mahad did not like where the dragon's judgments were going. He started to back away but the dragon wrapped its tail loosely around the priest. Then the Crimson Dragon reached out for the puzzle with its human-like hand.

"May I use it?" The dragon once again asked.

Mahad knew he could not deny a god's wish. He took off the puzzle and gave it to the dragon. The dragon gingerly closed its giant hand around the puzzle and stood up.

"I have to go collect the other Millennium Items. Do not worry about contacting Pharaoh Atem, I will do it myself. I believe I have found a way to lock away the Immortals for a while longer."


	31. Rivals

After the ritual, everyone decided to stay at the house for the rest on the night. Two straight days of no sleep made everyone less picky about their sleeping arraignment. The next morning Atem was the first to wake up, as always. Other than the nightmares, he was fine with no perceivable ill effects from his travel. He had half expected to meet the Higher Ups again since he traveled out of the afterlife alive, but no such meeting occurred. He hadn't lost anything as far as he was aware and everyone else seemed fine too. Even the Dark Magician card, jump starter, and page was still intact (if a little smoky).

Once everyone else woke up they came together to help clean up the mess that was left the night before. Even AJ helped clean. He tried many times to ask what everyone had been doing but no one gave him a straight answer. As he tried to figure that out, the others were distracted by a call. It was Mokuba. Seto had been moved from the public hospital to a private one in KaibaCorp. He apparently had something to say to everyone. He said he wanted them now.

"So many things to worry about, so little time." Rebecca sighed after Mokuba's call was over.

"Even though he doesn't always act like it, Seto's a friend. We have to be there for him too." Yugi said. Everyone agreed, their promise of friendship from last night extended to even Seto.

Marik would be the babysitter this time. He hardly knew Seto and he still had some things he had to clean up back at the house.

"I swore it wasn't a permanent marker. It's false advertising Rebecca!"

AJ was upset at once again being kept from the action, but with a yard full of snow and the mystery of the living room to figure out he had many other things to keep him busy.

"Were you guys trying to summon a dragon?" AJ asked Marik as everyone headed out the door.

"No... You don't have to worry about it so you can stop asking." Marik nervously chuckled. This made a wide smile spread across AJ's face. Something to figure out.

* * *

When the group got to the KaibaCorp building they were immediately shepherded to the top floor by guards. They were then just about pushed out of the elevator and left alone, the guards staying in the elevator. The building was usually still. It even managed to unnerve Bakura, the man that found himself happiest in complete silence. They all stood in front of the door to Seto's room, no one reaching forward. Eventually, it was Atem that took a deep breath and whispered,

"They are not Medusa heads." and opened the door. The group found themselves in a brightly lit room with Seto in bed at the center and Mokuba beside him. Seto's skin was pale, much paler than usual. Both his eyes and mouth barely moved. He looked like a corpse.

"Hey guys, glad you could come," Mokuba said. He had bags under his eyes. It looked like he hadn't moved from that chair for hours. Aches both Yugi and Atem could remember.

"Wow, the entire dork patrol is here." Seto barely glanced towards the group as he mumbled. It almost looked like it hurt him to even talk. The great Seto Kaiba, reduced to this. Growing up he had been a sort of assurance to them all. While the world fell apart around them, he would be standing firm and making cutting quips. Everyone lost their nerve to speak at such a scene. Everyone but Joey.

"Did he really just… You haven't called us dat since we were kids Kaiba! You nearly got yourself killed yesterday and dat's all you have to say. What the f-" Joey continued on to create such a wall of insults that Yugi attempted to cover Atem's ears. Atem pushed him off but couldn't help but chuckle at the gesture.

"I'm not your young son, Yugi," Atem said.

"I might even be too young for what Joey is saying. Seto must have really scared him." The others were originally worried about how Seto would react, but Joey's anger seemed to wake Seto up. Every new offense brought a little color back to the CEO. A sly smirk spread across his face as Joey vented his frustration.

"Good to see the cold hadn't frozen you to Wheeler." Seto sighed as he attempted to sit up. Everyone surrounded the bed. Seto was slow but he wouldn't let himself seem weak in front of everyone, he sat straight up. His face remained as stone, even unreadable for Atem. Eventually, though, Atem started to see cracks. Signs of guilt.

"I have never been a completely honest man. Surviving to become the CEO of KaibaCorp almost demanded it. I have thousands of secrets that could shake the world and for the most part, they don't haunt me. I hardly even think about them. But there's one I can't keep anymore. It's eating me from the inside." Seto finally said. Everyone glanced to one another. They were preparing for what Seto had to share. Even Mokuba seemed confused. Yet, Atem could tell that Yugi and Joey were already ready.

"I caused the Zero Reverse."

The room screamed with silence. The gang all knew that was what Joey had reported, but they had thought being warm again would bring Seto back to at least a little sanity.

"You can't be serious bro. We know it was an earthquake along with an-" Mokuba began.

"Don't repeat those lies!" Seto hissed. Everyone took a step back, other than Joey and Atem.

"What happened? Really?" Atem asked, his voice betraying no emotions.

"There was no natural disaster. That was something made up by our PR team. What really happened was bad management. I was warned about the reactor multiple times and I did nothing to stop it. Even going as far as to replace anyone that was worried with people who would agree with me. It's my fault and I'm no longer going to hide that fact." Seto said so blankly, it could have been confused for a business meeting pitch. Atem found he had no words; the others barely had any coherent thoughts. It was Joey's dash towards Seto that brought everyone back to reality.

"Kaiba, You what!?" Joey yelled as he pulled Seto by the front of his shirt. He pulled Seto right to his face. "You caused... EVERYTHIN'?!" Joey roared. Seto didn't blink, didn't even flinch as Joey brought up his fist. "Serenity, Tristan, Duke, MAI! DEY'RE ALL DEAD BECAUSE OF YOU!" Everyone was ready to try and pull Joey off Seto, Mokuba even grabbed the chair he was sitting on to be used as a weapon. Yet the fight never started. Everyone watched as Joey's shoulders slowly slumped. His fist lowered and a look of pure pity spread across his face.

"Seto, I'm so sorry." Was all he said.

* * *

The next day was spent by Seto's side. He explained everything he could, his curse from the afterlife, the Ener-D reactor, all in his same monotonal voice. His voice held none of his pride or haughtiness. Hearing him talk like that made everyone more anxious than the ramifications of what Seto was admitting. It was once again Joey that broke the mood.

"Well, looks like I'll have a therapy buddy. Who knew it be Seto?" He tried to laugh. Seto's face fell into a familiar scowl, the first all day.

"No." he growled.

"Huh? I was joking you big… never mind. But you really do need some professional help."

"No," Seto repeated. Therapy was apparently too lowly for someone like Seto. Therapy was for weaklings that heard voices in their heads, not for him.

"But, don't you kind of do that bro? Didn't you just say you've been telling yourself 'It's your fault' to the point it got in the way of things? Isn't that a voice in your head?" Mokuba lost his brother of the year award for that comment. Soon the others tried to add their own suggestions but Seto pushed them away. Actually, raising his voice as he fought everyone. They were glad to see he was no longer emotionless, they just wished he hadn't become stubborn.

Everyone knew he needed help, no mentally healthy person walks into a snowstorm when they need to be at a specific temperature (especially when they could have taken a picture and texted it). Yet, Seto was adamant that he was fine enough. The ensuing arguments got so bad that it went on for hours. No appeals to Seto's logic or emotions were working. Eventually, Atem stood up. He had been quiet the entire time. When he spoke Yugi recognized it as Atem's pharaoh voice.

"Duel. You. Me. Rematch, now." Atem said. Everyone's mouths dropped open.

"Are you crazy Atem?! My brother's in no condition for that!" Mokuba gasped. Seto remained stone-faced.

"Why do you think I'll do that? Think if you win, I'll listen to you?" He asked.

"No." Atem simply said as he reached into Yugi's bag. Sure enough, there was a duel disk in there. For someone that wanted to retire, Yugi still couldn't get out of the habit of carrying that disk everywhere.

"Then why are you challenging me?" Seto asked.

"All your life you've been challenging me to rematches at the most inconvenient moments. I think it's my turn now." Atem said as he started to put on the duel disk. "Besides, this would be my best chance to make up my lost against you." The room went quiet. It was Yugi that broke the silence this time by laughing.

"What?! Seto actually won against you?! When was this?" Yugi asked.

"In the afterlife, eighteen years ago," Atem said.

"Well, miracles do happen!" He continued to laugh. Seto gave him a glare that would have frozen most men.

"Yes, why is that so hard to believe?" Seto snapped. Yugi pulled his hands up in defense and nodded to Atem. Atem nodded back, Yugi knew what Atem was trying. Rebecca soon caught on and added.

"But this rematch just wouldn't be fair Atem. Seto's in no state to…" She purposefully trailed off.

"A curse and a bit of hypothermia will not stop me. I can still duel, better than both you Mutos." Seto pointed accusingly at the couple. He then threw his covers off and started to get out of bed. Mokuba wanted to stop him but Seto would have none of it. Despite (or maybe because of) his anger, he stumbled immediately on his limp. Everyone held their breath briefly. Atem almost wanted to go easy on him, he truly was sick, more than anyone else. Then Atem remembered that the group had been going easy on Seto for the last hour. If Seto was ever going to get better, Atem had to be tough.

"You are right Rebecca. It just wouldn't be fair. It wouldn't be a true duel." Atem sighed and started to put the duel disk away. This lit a fire in Seto's eyes that Atem hadn't seen in over two decades.

"I'll show you a true duel! I am still the same man that managed to beat you!" Seto tried to stomp over to Atem but once again his leg couldn't support him and he fell. Mokuba tried to run to his brother's side but Yugi stopped him. Atem knew it was a good thing Yugi was still so strong, nothing less could have stopped the younger Kaiba from going to his brother's side.

"Nyeh, Kaiba you're in no state to duel anyone competently. You know what though? If you want a duel dat bad I'll fight ya. It'll be my first of many wins over you." Joey added as he walked up beside Atem. Seto tried to glare at the two in front of him but he couldn't manage it. Every time he looked at Joey, he heard it.

It's your fault.

He knew he couldn't focus, the static and guilt were overtaking him. What they were saying was true. He looked down at the floor and didn't get up.

You're not even worth anything to a dead man. It's your fau- "But it doesn't have to stay that way." Atem said as he reached down and put out a hand. Seto looked up in surprise.

"You have always been my rival. Because of each other, we've reached new and higher heights. We both grew much more than we ever could have on our own. Yet, since I've left you've gotten lazy. Bogging yourself down to the point where you can't grow anymore. You need to warm up and get moving. The only way you can do that is to find a way to make peace with your guilt. Maybe then we can actually have a rematch fit for our rivalry."

Atem looked down at the CEO's blue eyes, the same color as his cousin's. Unlike his cousin, this Seto still had quite a journey in front of him if he was ever to find his peace. Seto stared at Atem's hand. Atem pleaded with his own eyes, take the first step, please.

Slowly, Seto took his hand and got back on his feet.

"Fine, But I am absolutely not being Joey's 'therapy buddy.' You better be ready for when we duel again." Seto growled, but his smirk had returned.

"Dere's the jerk I know and love! Come here!" Seto definitely did not 'come here,' reminding Joey that he was still his boss and signed his checks. That got Joey to back off fast.

* * *

The sun was once again below the horizon when the Mutos and Bakura finally collapsed at Yugi's house. Inside was spotless, not a hint of what went on the night before.

"You guys are finally back! Did you guys get the information you wanted from the afterlife?!" AJ yelled as he threw himself into his Dad's arms.

"Woah there! Wait, how did you…?" Yugi said. Everyone looked at Marik. His hair was not in its usual pristine condition and his clothes were covered with patches of jam.

"I swore I didn't say anything. He just squeezed himself in the pantry and spent most of the day muttering to himself. When I was feeding Chell he suddenly stood up and declared at the top of his lungs what happened last night. Needless to say, it surprised me." Marik said as he gestured to his new jam covered wardrobe. "Please tell me that Seto was worth going out today," Marik said with a tired sigh. The others couldn't help but giggle.

"I should have known it wouldn't be long until you put the pieces together. But did you have to scare Marik so bad?" Yugi chuckled as he lifting up AJ

"Hehe, sorry Marik. I just got so excited I had to declare my findings to the world. If it makes you feel any better, I hit my head on a pantry shelf while standing up." AJ chuckled while rubbing his head. "So, what did you get?"

Atem looked away from the boy briefly and glanced at the sparkling snow outside.

"A few things, information, reconnected family, but the most important to us is a waiting period. I know Mahad will get back to us as soon as he can. We just have to wait."

"How long?" AJ was the one to ask but Atem could tell everyone was thinking the same question.

"I don't know."


	32. Snippets

Everyone waited with bated breath for the afterlife to respond, yet, it didn't come. They couldn't just sit around so life continued on. There was something big just over the horizon, Yugi's retirement. The following month before the tournament was peaceful. The afterlife and Earthbound Immortals were quiet. Even Goodwin's looming shadow never crossed the gang. Yet, there were still a great many changes that took place. All to prepare for what felt like the end.

* * *

The group held both Seto and Joey to their promise to find help. Joey's help was a bit easier to find than Seto's. There were many Zero Reverse help groups still in effect and Joey found he had plenty of new friends in the same situation. Seto though had to find someone that wouldn't judge (or arrest him) him for the Zero Reverse. He managed to find such a person in an old game master of his, a supermodel turned therapist named Aileen Rao. She always had a way with people and it was exactly what Seto needed.

To Yugi surprise, he saw Seto and Joey crossing paths more. Though they still had their verbal sparring matches each time they met, they started meeting in less work-related locations. They certainly were not "hanging out" no, no, no, or at least that was what they yelled at Yugi when he brought it up. They simply were occasionally contacting the other. You know, since Seto was Joey's boss.

Yugi backed off but was inwardly smiling. What better place to find encouragement through trials than in a friend going through the same thing? Even if that encouragement was veiled in insults.

* * *

Goodwin came by KaibaCorp a few days after the blizzard to return the coat chip that accidentally ended up with his assistant. Mokuba thought Seto was going to go berserk on Goodwin, it was because the lackey's mistake that Seto nearly died. Yet, Seto did nothing, he simply took back the chip and led Goodwin out with a thank you. Mokuba then worried that Seto was becoming too soft. That changed when Seto made an announcement to the entire company.

Seto ended up not publicly admitting his mistake. Admitting so would ruin the company and all its branches. More people would have lost their livelihoods then lost their lives in the Zero Reverse. Yet as Seto said, he could no longer let his guilt fester inside him, it was going to kill him. So, he decided to do one last public thing for recompense as recommended by Aileen. He stepped down as CEO. This shook the world about as much as Yugi's retirement. Mokuba was ready to take over but he was still as surprised as everyone else. Seto decided he was going to run Yugi's retirement tournament (now named the King's Tournament) but that was the going to be the end.

* * *

"Kind of poetic huh?" Rebecca said to Yugi a few days after the blizzard. They were on the couch together when Seto's retirement was made official on TV. "You two became rivals both at the beginnings of your careers. Now you're ending together."

"True, but he never really was _my_ rival," Yugi said as he looked over to Atem.

Atem was looking out a window. Snow was still on the ground and he seemed to be enjoying it as much as he could. Atem had become very quiet the following days after the storm. Not the hiding kind of quiet that annoyed Yugi so much. The contemplative quiet, like the days after he had retrieved his memories all those years ago. Yugi remembered those days in Egypt after the Dark RPG. Atem had so many memories to arrange and come to terms with, he needed time. He wasn't just 'the pharaoh' anymore, he was Atem. Yugi had let him stay in the back of his mind as everyone hung out in Egypt for a while. Yugi was always thankful for those quiet days, it had allowed him to emotionally prepare for the end. Now those same emotions were starting to creep back into Yugi's heart. He didn't know why though, Atem wasn't going anytime soon… that Yugi knew of.

Yugi quickly shook his head. He was not going to let his thoughts go to that place. He was going to enjoy every moment he still had with Atem. Even if that meant leaving the teen alone to enjoy the sparkle of the snow.

* * *

Atem had asked everyone to wait for the afterlife to get back to them. Since they no longer had to focus on finding information and since most of their vacations were over, the group went their different ways. Téa went back to America but she promised to be there for the King's Tournament (she even helped advertise it in America). Bakura and AJ continued in school and Marik continued to rebuild his business. A certain biker gang was seen often helping him. They even got far enough along to put a roof on the building.

Joey, along with his counseling, began training again. There were many others invited to the championship along with Joey; pro duelist like Chazz Princeton, Jim Cook, and Rafael, just to name a few. It was a great deal of new talent that Joey had to prepare for.

"I might be a bit older den most of my competitors but I'm still goin' for the King of Games title! How else can I make up bein' an idiot to Yuge?" Joey had said.

Atem too received an invitation, but he declined. He was still planning on leaving. It just wouldn't be fair to participate, to anyone. That didn't stop Atem from holding onto the invitation. He would occasionally glance at it, wondering what it would have been like if he did stay. Could he have started his second dueling career there? He knew he had a good chance of getting far in the tournament. It would be an amazing jumping off point. People would immediately recognize him from the event, making it easier for him to get those "sponsors" that were so important to pro duelists. He could take online school as he worked through the dueling world, maybe even go to Kaiba's Duel Academy to actually get a degree in dueling. There he could make some friends outside of the gang and… He knew he shouldn't think like that. It only made things harder.

Mahad had seemed surprised that he wanted to come back to the afterlife so soon. Did Atem have a choice, could he stay? No, despite the warm home the Mutos provided and the life he could build here, this was not his place. He had a job and a family waiting for him. It was that same persistent feeling that ate at him all those years ago. He had a place and it was not here, no matter how much he wished it was.

* * *

Atem helped train Joey and anyone else that wished to train over the following month. Which was pretty much everyone.

"I see why you surprised Chazz so much. You really are good!" Jaden cheered after an intense training session. Atem had to sit down, even in a small training duel Jaden still drained him.

"Thank you. You're no pushover yourself." Atem smiled as he flopped back on the porch.

"You think my buddies and I have a chance at being the King of Games?" Jaden asked as all his card Spirits surrounded him. He had more duel Spirits follow him around than any other. This is why the two had to battle outside in the cold, there just wasn't room in the living room.

"Well…" Atem began. The Spirits crowded more around Jaden in excitement.

Atem didn't feel like giving his honest opinion away since he was supposed to be an impartial teacher. Yet, because he had dueled with almost everyone in the tournament (that knew him) he had a good idea of where things were going to end up. He wasn't sure if he liked his prediction.

"Well… I think that you won't get the title if we keep sitting around like this. Come on, let's practice with fairy monsters." Atem said standing up.

"Really? Yugi doesn't use many Fairy-type monsters." Jaden pointed out.

"Who knows? He is changing his deck around and I don't even know what he has planned." Atem said as he looked out at the empty parking space. Yugi was at work, which is why Atem chose this time to train with duelists. Yugi was adamant about keeping his potential opponents' strategies unknown to him. Then again, Yugi really didn't have time to think of his opponents. He had so much work to do.

* * *

Before the championship, Yugi and Rebecca prepared their gaming company for another big game release and to make it both their full-time jobs. Atem could tell Yugi was excited to just be a game maker and programmer again. One day, Atem went to see him at work and noticed something interesting.

"You're like a pharaoh," Atem said.

"Excuse me?" Yugi asked, looking up from his computer. Atem sat right beside Yugi in his office. This office wasn't as grandiose as Seto's, Just a desk and a computer with tons of family pictures around it. Then again, this space was probably more comfortable to Yugi than any great and spacious office.

"The way you run your company. Everyone respects you and your orders." Atem said.

"That's just being a good boss." Yugi chuckled. Just then a frenzied worker came running in about a glitch that was on a coastline in the old game. He was wondering whether the company should use their limited manpower to patch the glitch for the old game right as the new one was coming out. Atem watched as Yugi talked and worked with the programmer. Eventually, the worker left happy and completely calm.

"No, it's more than just that." Atem continued. "You have the right aura. They aren't following you because you are above them. They follow you because they know you will do what is best for all of them. You would have made for an amazing ruler."

"Thank you. I had a great example growing up." Yugi smiled. Atem's scars on his shoulders and chest from the yo-yo wires suddenly felt a lot itchier under Yugi's smile.

"Yes, great example…" Atem trailed off.

* * *

The Spirit slinked in through a window. Its lock had been broken for years and the Spirit knew "grandpa" was never getting around to fix it. He had been using this window on the first floor since day one. It was quiet and away from any bright streetlights.

The Spirit quietly slid the window closed behind him. He had snuck in and out like this for months now, all to make sure Yugi Muto was safe and avenged. Anytime this city's scum dared push Yugi too far he would be there. He just wished Yugi would stop rolling over and giving in to those monsters, it was always a hassle watching Yugi get beat up like he usually did. It was even more of a hassle playing shadow games with a hurt body. Then again, it made it all the sweeter to beat menaces when they were expecting innocent Yugi Muto. The Spirit grinned at that thought as he snuck through the game shop.

A good thing he picked up from Yugi was his agileness and ability to sneak. The boy had learned those skills to stay away from bullies, the Spirit used them to get back at bullies. In fact, he had just used them to play with a certain game show brat. The smell of electricity and burnt flesh still occasionally wafted off the Spirit but it was nothing quick shower and clean clothes wouldn't fix.

"Yugi?" The Spirit stiffened. How? He had been so quiet. The Spirit slowly turned to see his "mother" and "grandpa" sitting at the kitchen table, both in violet bathrobes. They were waiting for him.

"See Solomon, I told you Yugi has been sneaking out." His mother said.

"I suppose you're right. What were you doing Yugi?" Grandpa said with disappointment in his eyes. In the back of the Spirit's mind, he felt a twinge of guilt, probably from Yugi. He had to work fast or Yugi would wake up. Yugi did not need to trouble himself with things like this.

"Out with friends." The Spirit quickly said. He knew his voice was different from Yugi's, he just had to hope that these two adults were too tired to notice.

"We have a rule young man. In the house by nine!" Grandpa had said.

"I understand, I will go to my room now." The Spirit mumbled and started to head for the stairs.

"We're not done yet. What is that on you?" His mother said as she got up and pointed to the Spirit's clothes. He still had his school uniform on. He looked down to see the edges were burnt, most likely from the electric chair.

"An accident, can I go to bed now?" He needed to get out now, he could hear the shadows' whisperings getting louder. He had already given them a shadow game tonight, why did they want more?

"What in the world happened!? Why were you playing with fire in the middle of the night? What is going on with you Yugi?" His mother demanded, covering his exit upstairs. She was taller than him, but she was still very weak, weaker than most humans. This is why she could never travel with her husband or have more than one child. The Spirit growled. The shadows were almost deafening at this point. He couldn't get a full thought through his head.

Send them to the Shadow Realm. It is the only way to get control of the situation.

"That's not what she was really worried about Yugi," Grandpa said as he too stood up and walked over. The Spirit could tell grandpa was once a master gambler, now he was a weak old man. He wouldn't survive the shadow realm any better than Yugi's mother.

"We've been hearing about some bad things that happened to the kids at your school. You always seem to be out when they happen. I don't want to point fingers but with you being evasive like this…" Grandpa said as he came from behind the Spirit and tried to put his hand on his shoulder. The Spirit pulled away with a snarl. They were unknowingly cornering a monster. The Spirit needed an escape route, Yugi was waking up. He felt the shadow magic flow through him. One more step and…

"STOP!" Atem yelled as he sat up in bed. As far as his nightmares were concerned, this one wasn't that bad. This one had not been even based on real events, it was just that this was the fourth one his week.

Atem let his head fall back on his pillow. While this dream wasn't based on any memory of his, it still could have happened if he had been caught. He could of, he would of, sent two innocent people to the shadow realm. He shuddered to think what would have happened to them there.

"Atem!" Atem turned to his open door to see Yugi run towards his room and then start sliding on his socks, making him go flying by. Atem cringed at the crash he heard. He then jumped out of bed and ran to Yugi's side.

"Are you ok?" Atem asked.

"That's what I was going to ask you. You yelled. I could hear it all the way from my room." Yugi said worriedly, not even stopping to see if he had hurt himself.

Atem groaned, he thought he was better than this. He could usually stop himself from screaming. He was losing his touch.

"It was nothing. Just a nightmare." Atem mumbled as he helped Yugi to his feet.

"Like the ones you had when you first came here?" Yugi asked. Atem shook his head and walked back to his room. Yugi followed him but stayed leaning on the doorway.

"No, those ones I could never remember. These ones I remember, vividly…" Atem sighed. He then looked at the old desk in his room. On it was a mirror. Magenta eyes stared back at Atem, not red like in his dream.

"Weird huh? My eyes were originally red. They slowly grew to become your color magenta over time. It was like a growth chart, the saner I am, the purplier my eyes." Atem ruefully chuckled, he was tired. Yugi held longer onto the doorway as he looked at the mirror too.

"Are your dreams about when you first came out of the puzzle?" he asked.

"This one, though the time changes in each one. Nonetheless, it's always the same thing. They are of me, being a monster and hurting the people you and I love because they got in my way." Atem sighed.

This brought Yugi into the room, he sat beside Atem on his bed. Yugi couldn't quite see in here. He wanted to turn on a light but felt that it would make Atem feel worse. Even in a mortal body, Atem was always happiest in shadow.

"Well, that's annoying," Yugi said. Atem looked to him with a raised eyebrow. Yugi then continued. "I would hate if all my dreams where about my teen years. I can't help but cringe at those times. Just thinking of how often I wore my school uniform outside of school makes me shiver. Why did I think it was fashionable?" Yugi groaned. It made Atem smiled but he still shook his head.

"It's different than that. It's not just embarrassing things I dream about, I am actually hurting people. And what's worse is I know that back then I would have done it." Atem said.

"There's the two words, would have," Yugi said. "You would have. You won't though. You have changed so much from when you first came out of the puzzle. It's like looking back at my bad fashion choices as a kid. Just try barely glancing at how much you've changed compared to… those people that attacked you at the construction site." Yugi eventually said. Atem couldn't help but ball his hands into fists every time he thought about those men.

Yugi continued. "Besides even when you were 'a monster' you only ever attacked those that attacked first and went too far. That's more than I can say for the true monsters we've met." Atem nodded and briefly looked down at the scars along his shoulder.

"I suppose there are worse times to dream of," Atem said, quickly locking away his truly worst memories. He refused to even think of California and those green stones, just in case they did end up in a dream.

"I guess," Yugi said. Atem could tell that was not quite what Yugi was going for but it would do. They both needed sleep.

Yugi wished him good night and made Atem promise to tell him if he had more nightmares like that. It was then Atem thought of something that might make him feel better.

* * *

In front of Atem was the lumbering shadow of the New Domino maximum security prison. Just one prisoner, just one, that's all he would visit. Any more and Yugi would worry.

Atem went through the many, MANY, security checks. Finally, he found himself on one side of a grey wall. This wall would project a holographic call. Soon enough it flashed to life. In front of Atem was a man sitting in his cell with a large yellow tattoo scrawled across his face.

"Ah, the pharaoh had decided to grace me with his presences." The man still had that ugly smile, even if he didn't have his red hat to accent it.

"Continuous Bomber," Atem said coldly.

"I have a name you know. Just as you do."

Atem remained silent. That yellow tattoo on the man's face was new. Apparently, anyone that was caught doing crime in New Domino was tattooed in that bright yellow ink. Any officer could supposedly read it and know the criminal's history. What else was new was the bomber's cuts, bruises, and singed hair.

"You just got out of a fight, didn't you?" Atem observed. The wounds looked like they hurt.

"Huh? Oh, this? This was no fight, this was for a game of duel monsters. I suppose you would know games like this the best." The bomber grinned. Atem knew that was no legal battle if the damage was that bad. Yet, the guards didn't look too concerned for their prisoner. Atem continued to stay emotionless, his face showing no happiness or sadness over the bomber's injuries. The bomber's smile lessened

"Why are you here? Just to see how your old victim is doing? Wanna put some other curse on me? Here to brag, here to beg? What are you here for!?" The bomber tried to grab his cell bars. He screamed as the bars electrocuted him and threw him to the back wall of his cell.

"Another sudden movement like that and we are ending this visit!" A guard ordered from outside the camera's view. The bomber slowly got up, his smile gone.

"So… what do you want? Because you're not going to get it. Eye for an eye Atem. I only did what you did to me, to all of us. Has your friends and family realized that or have you manipulated them too?"

"What you did was cruel," Atem said.

"Ya? And what would you call what you did to us?"

"I would call it cruel too, but there is one big difference between our two actions. I feel guilty. I swore to change and grow. To never do anything like that again. You had a chance to leave that life behind you and yet you're back in jail. Right where you started."

"…Does that make you feel better? To say it to my face? To prove to me that you are the better man?"

"I'm not here to prove anything to you," Atem said. The bomber grew even more confused as he could tell by Atem's tone that he was telling the truth.

"Then why come here?" he asked. Atem shook his head and turned away.

"I'm done here. Thank you for your time Mr. Furīza. May your life sentence treat you well." Atem simply said, no anger, no sadness, no joy. The bomber's face showed even more confusion as the call ended.

As Atem walked away he continued to show no emotions, but on the inside, he felt a combination of pity and pride. He had proven this many time over but he had to do it one more time, for himself. He had to prove he wasn't the Spirit he had been his first seven months. He could have cursed the bomber then and there, it would have been so small Jaden wouldn't have felt anything, yet he didn't. There was nothing to prove to Mr. Furīza, it was all for him. The nightmares had scared Atem and he had to know what Yugi was so sure of, that he wasn't that Spirit anymore. He had a name, friends, and memories. He was Atem Muto.

That name rung out in Atem's head. It seemed to echo like a bell. Suddenly, Atem felt a little off. Right as this happened Atem passed by a reflective metal pole. In the reflection, his eyes were completely black and his irises were a familiar blood red. Atem nearly tripped in his speed to turn around and run to the pole. He gripped the pole and looked into his reflection, much to the confusion of his escorting guards. His reflection was fine. His irises were magenta and the whites of his eyes were exactly that. Atem sighed in relief and followed the guards out. He was Atem Muto. He was more than a spirit, he had a family, he had friends, he had...

* * *

Interests outside of shadow games. Atem found he was quite fascinated by coding and game making. Especially making sure the mechanics were fair but allowed for diversity in play. He would often bother Rebecca or Yugi to teach him more. When they were gone Atem found himself playing and finishing Yugi's game. He caught a monster team he personally connected with and trained them to be competitive.

"You're sure putting a lot of time into that game. You thinking of joining a tournament?" AJ asked one day near the beginning of December. Atem sighed and closed the handheld game.

"No, I doubt I'll stay around long enough for something like that. This game is just fun." Atem admitted. AJ frowned, he never liked when his uncle's leaving was brought up.

"Well, say if you did stay longer. Would you go to tournaments with me? Pleeeaaasssee? I could read all the Japanese writing for you." AJ begged.

Atem laughed. "Of course. Maybe we could even get Seto obsessed with this game too. We could finally be rivals again without ancient shadow magic getting in the way." Atem chuckled.

"Unless you are actually the re-reincarnation of some ancient Mesopotamian king destined to play Dad's game. Then, you were born again as a pharaoh for duel monsters. Think about it, you could be a reborn ruler for almost every game in the world!" AJ laughed as he threw his hands up in the air.

"Don't give the Higher Ups any ideas. They've destined me for stranger things."

* * *

The rest of the month moved along without incident. It was at the same time relaxing and unnerving. After his visit to the prison, Atem had no more nightmares and felt no shadows. The Earthbound Immortals were almost becoming a distant thing. Atem just had to focus on himself and staying away from the paparazzi. Was this what most teens lives were like?

Finally, it was the night before the King's Tournament. Atem hadn't felt this kind of buzz in the air since he and Yugi shared a body. Rebecca, Yugi, and Atem were in the living room watching old dueling reruns. No one spoke, it was a comfortable silence, yet everyone was scared to move. Because moving would signal...

"It's ten. Time for bed." Rebecca finally sighed. Yugi tensed up and Atem sighed too. It was the beginning of the end.

"Ok, remember to wake up early tomorrow. We have to be ready." Yugi said.

"We got this Honey. It's you I'll be worried about. Do you have your clothes picked out?" Rebecca asked.

"Yes."

"Found your duel belt?"

"I wasn't going to bring it."

"Because you don't want it, or because you couldn't find it?" Rebecca asked with a raise of her eyebrow.

"Bec, I'm fine. Just get yourself to bed. I'll be up in an hour or two." Yugi chuckled.

"Ok, but duel belts do make it easier to carry your deck. There's going to be a lot of walking around tomorrow and I don't want to see you accidentally drop your deck on live TV." She said with a shrug and started to walk upstairs.

"You know what, maybe I will set out my belt," Yugi said as he too got up.

Atem watched the two go up the stairs but he didn't follow. He did not want to leave the couch. It was a weird feeling, wanting to stay still but at the same time run a mile. Atem shook his head. It was so quiet. So quiet in fact he could hear Rebecca and Yugi from downstairs.

"Is it in the top drawer?" Rebecca asked

"That's the first place I checked and no," Yugi answered.

"Bathroom?"

"…No."

"AJ's room?"

"…Good night AJ. No, could you just come over here and help me search?"

"Are you absolutely sure it's not in the top drawer?"

"I told you it's one of the first places I looked. See, it's not here… You love me, right?"

"Sweet Obelisk."

Atem hid his chuckle as Yugi came downstairs with his duel belt and a large case.

"Staying up too Atem?" Yugi asked.

Atem shrugged. "I guess it's just dueling jitters, and I'm not even in the tournament tomorrow."

"How do you think I'm feeling? My last duel for the King of Games title. What if my opponent wins without me getting a chance to fight back? What if I win without my opponent fighting back?! It's a scary thought." Yugi said as he sat down next to Atem and put the large stacked case on the table. The case broke into three parts and each part had a few card binders inside.

"Making your deck last minute?" Atem asked in surprise.

"No, well kind of. I've had an idea of what my deck would be but I wanted to wait until tonight to officially put it together." Yugi said as he continued to pull out more and more cards.

"Why?"

"Because I wanted to put it together with you," Yugi said like it was the most obvious fact in the world.

"Me? But it's your deck. It's supposed to represent you."

"I did take that approach when I was preparing for our ceremonial duel, but this is different. This is for the King of Games title, something we won together. Even though I won the title from you I would have never gotten that far in dueling without you. I think it's only fair that we work together on this. Like we used to do." Yugi grinned. Atem felt touched. He was glad Yugi still treasured the hours they had spent building decks back in the day. It had been one of the first ways they bonded with each other.

"Ok, I'll help," Atem said with a smile.

"Great, now where is it? Ah!"

Yugi then hit a hidden button on one of the cases. Out popped a large secret compartment. Yugi reached in and pulled out a golden puzzle box. It still shined as it had eighteen years ago, it didn't have a single new scuff mark on it.

"You still have it." Atem breathed.

"Of course, I do. It's pure gold, you think I'd throw away gold?"

Atem face fell a bit, Yugi laughed and ruffled Atem's hair.

"And it means more to me than almost any other single possession I have," Yugi added. He opened the box to reveal his strongest cards and Atem's cartouche. Just then Gandora used her spirit powers to stick her head in through a wall.

"You're card's important to me too, Gandora!" Yugi laughed as Gandora attempted to fit her body in too but got too lazy. So, she settled for pushing her head into Yugi. "Atem help! She's trying to squish me until I use all her cards." Yugi continued to laugh as he weakly fought the spirit. Atem found himself laughing too as the two managed to get the dragon's head off Yugi.

"Ok, that's one vote for Gandora-X." Yugi smiled as he pulled the card out of the puzzle box and put it center on the table.


	33. The King's Tournament

It was one of the cutest things Rebecca had ever seen. Yugi and Atem were asleep together on the couch. She had predicted that Yugi would stay up all night to build his deck but she hadn't expected Atem. Yugi was asleep in a sitting position with his arm around Atem's shoulder. Atem's head was resting on Yugi's chest as the two breathed together rhythmically. In front of them was a complete mess of cards and scratch paper. Only one thing was organized, a neat stack of cards. Rebecca had to save this scene for posterity so she quietly pulled out her phone. Sadly, she forgot to turn off the flash.

"Huh?" Yugi groaned as he tried to blink the sudden light out of his eyes.

"Stay still! Close your eyes and don't move." She whispered. Yugi let his head fall back on the couch. He sat there without really knowing why until he registers the weight on his chest.

"Oh, whoops. So much for going to bed early." Yugi groaned after he gave Rebecca time to get a few more pictures.

"What?" Atem sleepily moaned. When he realized where he was, he quickly sat up and attempted to wipe the sleep from his eye.

"We better get ready Atem," Yugi said as he got up and started to messily put his cards away. As soon as Atem saw what time it was he immediately shot off towards his room. AJ had just started coming down the stairs when the blur that was Atem passed him.

"He has places to be," AJ said, gesturing towards Atem with his thumb when he reached the bottom of the stairs.

"Of course, he does! We are all about to be on live TV. Just look at you, you're not even out of your PJs yet! You should be rushing to get ready too, this is a big day." Rebecca said.

"That's the understatement of the year," Yugi said to himself. AJ managed to slip past his mother and give Yugi the biggest hug his ten-year-old body could give.

"I'm so excited Dad! They're going to have to add at least another two hours to 'Duel Monsters: A History' from this tournament alone." AJ grinned.

"Won't that be dry to watch." Yugi chuckled as he finally got all his cards together. He then took his new deck and put in the pouch on his duel belt.

"Can you tell me what's in your deck?" AJ asked with hopeful eyes. Rebecca seemed to be hiding the same hope.

"Nope, you'll just have to wait and see like everyone else," Yugi said as he ruffled AJ's hair. Both mother and son were disappointed but remained quiet. They then heard Atem open his door upstairs and start to come back down.

"Hey, Atem! Do you mind picking one of those bags you see at the top of the stairs as yours? Then bring it down if you can?" Rebecca yelled upstairs.

"One of these bags? Sure." Atem said as he saw four small backpacks by the stairs. He reached down to grab one and immediately felt how heavy it was. It surprised him and he almost fell forward with a grunt.

"Don't worry about it Atem. I'm coming up and I'll be able to take them down." Yugi said as he reconnected his card case and started for the stairs. So as to not be outdone by Yugi, Atem quickly grabbed a backpack and slung it on his back.

"What is in these?" Atem asked Yugi as he passed by.

"Oh, just emergency things like extra duel disks, documents, and battery-powered electronics."

"Why do we need things like this today? Are we going on a hike afterward?"

"No, but you know what tournaments are like, something always goes wrong. Each person has a bag just in case we end up separated and have to survive in another dimension or something." Yugi said with a lazy wave of his hand. "We bring them to every big tournament. While most times we never use them, it's always better to be safe than sorry. Especially in other dimensions."

Atem looked behind him at the black and gold bag that he had claimed as his. "Anything else I need to put in here?"

"Not really, I think Rebecca and I got everything. Though, it could get boring waiting for things to start. You might want to bring a game of some kind." Yugi suggested as he went into his own room. Atem thought for a bit then grabbed his handheld gaming system. While he was going to a duel monsters tournament, he wouldn't mind playing a bit of Yugi's game. Maybe he could convince the other Mutos to do the same and they could have a little tournament of their own.

* * *

Soon enough the sun started to peak over the horizon, time to go. Atem was in the living room with AJ playing Yugi's game. Both had just managed to get away from Rebecca's dreaded brush. She had spent a good hour on each of their hair trying to make it less frizzy. Atem thought that after being married to Yugi for so many years she'd know that was a futile fight.

"Do we have everything? Backpacks, passes, duel decks, baby carrier…" Rebecca continued to list as the boys showed her what she named.

"I think we are finally ready." Yugi said as he came down the stairs in his tournament clothing. When Atem saw what Yugi was wearing he had to hold back a laugh. He quickly covered his mouth but it didn't stop Yugi from noticing.

"What? Is something wrong with my clothes." Yugi asked as he looked over himself.

"No, no you look great." Atem hastily said.

Yugi did look good. Much better than Atem's clothes at least. There was no dress code for this tournament, the duelist just had to wear what their fans knew them best in. Atem had simply thrown on a clean black jacket, magenta t-shirt, and studded choker. In contrast, Yugi wore designer clothes. He had a dark grey shirt on with a well-crafted, long, royal blue coat that flared out at the belt and continued on to his knees. His clothing gave off the aura of a modern king, exactly what his fans loved. It had been his signature outfit for the last decade. It was just…

"It looks like an adult version of your school uniform. You were just talking a few weeks ago how you were embarrassed at the fact you wore the uniform almost every day." Atem said while still holding back a chuckle. Yugi raised an eyebrow and really looked at his clothes, then he looked to Rebecca.

"Do I really still wear my school uniform?" He asked.

Rebecca looked away but Atem could see a smile creep across her face. "You have always been drawn to those colors, but that's because they look good one you! No time to worry about that now. We have a tournament to get too!" Rebecca said as she started to push the family out the door. Right into the throng of photographers and press. If Gandora was physical she would have been drowning in people. This is why KaibaCorp had a helicopter ready and waiting for the family, another good reason to have such a big yard.

* * *

The tournament was humongous, the biggest tournament in decades. Half of New Domino city was closed off so enough parking and space could be provided. Many multi-colored vendors lined the street to the stadium. Each selling their own odd or rare thing (so they said, the actual worth of the items or food was up for debate). Even with all the extra space, the streets were still filled shoulder to shoulder with people. The whole world was either at the stadium or glued to their screens as Yugi Muto took to the microphone and welcomed everyone to the King's Tournament. As he spoke, he looked around at the crowd in the massive stadium. Along with the menagerie of regular fans, he could see the bright primary colors of Duel Academy students covering a good chunk of the crowd. They must have been on a school trip to witness the passing of the title. Also, in the crowd was Sector Security. While Yugi felt safer with them there he could tell they put Atem on edge. Yugi decided to ignore that for now and focus on continuing his speech.

"Now that I've got all the pleasantries out of the way let me explain how this tournament works. This tournament will be my last tournament as the King of Games, no matter what happens. What we are all here to see is if there is a duelist that has the power to take this title from me!" This got a cheer from the crowd and the group of chosen duelists below. The duelists were from all over the world, most with multiple world championships under their belts. Yugi didn't have a clue which he would battle but he was excited nonetheless. He hadn't felt exhilarated like this in many, many years.

"We will have one on one duels until we're are down to only two duelists. They will battle and the winner will be crowned the next King of Games. However, they will not be walking away from this tournament so easily. Before they can get adjusted to their crown, they will have to duel me. I have to make sure they are truly worthy of the title" Yugi opened up his duel disk to accentuate the point. He had practiced for many years on how to be imposing, hard for a short shy man with wild hair. However here, even though the TV screen viewers could feel the King of Games's power. If there were any doubts in the crowd about Yugi's strength it was dashed then and there.

"Prepare yourselves duelist, because the tournament begins now!" Yugi announced. Many large screens posted around the stadium flared to life. Each showed headshots of the duelists as they were randomly assigned to each other. The crowd cheered as the duelists got into place. Yugi nodded to the duelists below and went back to his family and friends. They were sitting in a skybox above the stadium, they got the best view of the dueling with the many screens around them and an elevator straight to the bottom if they wanted a closer look.

"You did amazing honey!" Rebecca cheered as Yugi just about collapsed beside her.

"Thanks, I'm just glad that part's over. Now for the fun part. Seeing the duels." Yugi smiled. He looked at the row behind him to see Téa, Bakura, Marik, and Mokuba sitting there. Beside him was Rebecca, his two children, and Seto. "Hey, where's Atem?"

"He's still getting interviewed I think," Bakura said.

"We tried to shield him, but he got separated from us and cornered," Seto said. Yugi looked over to Seto with a tilt of his head. The CEO looked much better than he had a month ago. While he still looked too young for his age and had his limp, he wasn't as ghostly pale and a fire had returned to his eyes. What was even more terrifying was that he actually smiled every once in a while. Sure, his smiles were always smirks, but now they had a bit more of good humor behind them.

Yugi had originally worried that Seto wouldn't come to this tournament he had worked so hard to build. He would have understood if Seto needed a little time out of the public eye, but he should have known that was not Kaiba's style. It had truly made Yugi smile when he saw Seto and Mokuba waiting for them when the helicopter landed, standing proudly in front of a wave of camera clicks.

"Oh dear, poor Atem," Yugi said, wondering if he should go out there and save the pharaoh.

"It's no use Yugi. He's gone." Rebecca said in a purposefully dramatic voice. Yugi sighed and put his hand on her's. There really wasn't much he could do. Atem was on his own. Trusting that the teen wouldn't embarrass himself, the group focused on the duel below.

* * *

The group watched a few great duels before the elevator behind them pinged and opened. Atem stumbled out and collapsed in a similar fashion to Yugi in a chair next to Téa.

"And he lives," Seto smirked. Yugi turned back to Atem who was nearly melting into his chair.

"They asked me about secrets I didn't even know I had," Atem said while giving the thousand-yard stare.

"I'm sure you did fine Atem. You're better at knowing what effect your words will have than most people do." Téa tried to smile as she patted Atem's shoulder.

"You missed Dad's big speech!" AJ said as he spun around in his chair to face Atem.

"I did? Sorry Yugi, it wasn't my intention." Atem sighed.

"It's fine, it wasn't that spectacular of a speech anyways. What is spectacular is these duels." Yugi said, knowing that would wake Atem up. It did the trick better than Yugi had expected as Atem nearly vaulted the row in front of him to better look at what was going on.

"Who is dueling?" Atem asked.

"The first duel was Jaden against a man named Brier. Jaden won in less than two rounds. Then there was Chazz against Rafael, Chazz just won. Then was-" Yugi listed.

"It's Joey turn!" yelled Marik. Sure enough, Joey came sauntering out onto the field. He too looked much better from a month ago. His hair was back to being neat and his body language showed confidence. What made his friends happiest to see was his real smile.

"He's the light of the stage down there," Téa said and everyone nodded. Joey was really happy.

"He is known as the grinning gambler. It would be a disservice to the small group of freaks he calls fans if he didn't at least try to be happy." Seto said with an eye-roll. Despite what he said, even he could see the change in Joey.

Joey's duel was against a short woman called Blair Flannigan. She used a Token deck and almost froze out Joey's whole team when she played Messenger of Peace. Even through this dire situation Joey had one advantage, he had used tokens his whole dueling career and knew their weakness inside and out. He was waiting for his chance.

The entire time his friends were cheering him on louder than anyone else in the stadium, Atem stayed standing near the edge of the skybox. This of course made the cameras focus on the group in the skybox more than not. While the rare footage of Atem Muto was highly sought after, what they were also looking to see was the King of Games's reactions. It had been like this for many years, every time Yugi went to a tournament everyone wanted to see his facial expressions so they could pick apart its meaning. They often guessed wrong and Yugi knew this well. While he had copied a bit of Atem when he made his speech, in the skybox he channeled his inner Kaiba. Making sure not to give the cameras a thing. On the inside though, he was cheering harder than anyone else.

"Oh, Ra he did it." Rebecca fell back in her seat as Joey was able to pull out a win.

"Were you worried? He has many more dueling years over that girl. She was making mistakes left and right. It was enviable." Seto said while crossing his arms. Everyone glanced at each other with hidden smiles. This battle had been the most vocal Seto had all morning. The entire time he criticized Joey and acted like he couldn't care in the least. That didn't stop him from nearly throwing Atem aside so he could see better when it looked like Joey took a battle ending hit.

* * *

It was time. Six duels later Joey let out a large breath as the last of Chazz's Ojama disappeared from the field. He won, he was going to duel for the Crown.

"An amazing duel between the Ojama Master and the Grinning Gambler but once again lady luck is on Joey's side as he pulls out another win." cried the announcer. The crowd roared in response as the last of the semifinals ended.

Chazz's shoulder visible slumped as he saw his opponent cheer and wave to the crowd.

"We're sorry, boss." Was all the yellow Ojama could say. Chazz lifted his hand towards the Ojama. It braced itself to be swatted away but instead, Chazz gently patted it.

"Nothing more we can do, we fought our hardest. The Chazz will have the crown one day, just not today." Chazz sighed. Joey finished showboating for the crowd and ran across the stadium to Chazz's side.

"Great duel dere Princeton. You really had me on the ropes." Joey grinned, Even Chazz could not help but smile back, Joey was infectious like that.

"You too Wheeler. Good luck with your next duel, you're going to need it." Chazz said with a wave of his hand as he walked off the stage.

"You don't have to worry about me. Lady luck has never failed me before." Joey grinned, not really expecting a response.

"Your opponent is an old classmate of mine. I have yet to beat him in the nine years I've known him. Trust me I've tried. You're going to need more than luck." Chazz called back as he walked back into the stadium. This made the hairs on the back of Joey's neck stand up. He wasn't fearful though, he was pumped.

"Everybody Listen! This is it, the battle for the crown! Will it be Joey Wheeler? The Grinning Gambler with the Red-Eyes Black Dragon behind him?! Or the Hero from New Space, Jaden Yuki!" Joey turned as Jaden walked onto the field from the opposite opening Chazz walked into. Jaden wore the Slifer Red jacket of Duel Academy. Joey had talked enough with Seto to know that jacket was supposed to represent the worst of Duel Academy. Yet, Jaden wore it like it was a pharaoh's cape. Joey had to give props to anyone who had the guts to wear something equaling a dunce cap and make it something to be proud of.

Joey pulled out his deck and ran to the middle of the field. Jaden was smiling but it wasn't his usually easy smile. This was filled with focus and determination.

"You ready for this Jaden? This duel's goin' to go down in history." Joey asked as they both met in the middle of the field. They traded decks and started to shuffle.

"As ever Joey. It might even be something those Duel Academy kids are going to have to study and memorize. Poor them, because this duel is going to be sweet!" Jaden said as he handed the deck back to Joey. They enthusiastically shook hands and raced to their perspective sides of the field.

"Everyone listen! This is it. A homegrown duelist that has been the Godfather of dueling for a generation now. Aaaannnd! The star student from Duel Academy that has already fought for this title two times now. Who will win? There is only one way to find out. Ready?" Everyone in the crowd joined in, even the gang in the skybox

"3! 2! 1! Duel!"

* * *

Atem through everything had been leaning on the edge of the box, he hadn't left this position since he had recovered from his interview. When the duel between Jaden and Joey started however, he looked back to Yugi. Yugi was sitting straight up and had his arms and legs crossed. His face had a planted half-smile on it. The picture of calm, but Atem knew better. Yugi was freaking out. Atem was about to say something when Seto lazily got up from his chair.

"Where are you going?" Marik asked.

"I don't need to waste my time with this duel. I know who's going to win. I'll see you guys when Yugi duels." Seto said with a lazy arm wave. Atem watched as Seto went to the elevator behind them and closed the door. Atem then noticed the lights above the door. Seto was going to the bottom floor, an empty lookout where those that got these VIP seats could see the duel up close. Atem smiled at Seto's childishness but he wasn't going to focus on that, now there was an empty seat near Yugi.

"I'm sure Seto won't mind if I sit here. I don't think he is coming back." Atem whispered as he sat next to Yugi.

"Lucky him. The press would freak out if I dared move. I can hear it now 'oh, he doesn't think those two duelists are good enough for him' or 'he can't stand to see his friend duel, he's clearly playing favorites' I guess the King of Games is too good for a bathroom break." Yugi chuckled. Atem smiled back while he did his best to copy Yugi's indifferent look, for the cameras.

"Are you holding up?" Atem asked.

"Well enough I suppose. Not better than anyone else at least." Yugi said with a shrug. Atem recognized those words from back when they first met in the afterlife. The same empty sadness seemed to cloud Yugi's usually bright eyes.

"Are you sure?" Atem asked, unconvinced.

This immediately made Yugi shake his head and put on a more convincing smile. "What am I saying? I wanted this, I am the one that is giving up the title despite most people's objections. I even helped put this tournament together. I have no reason to be gloomy."

"It is fine to be sad. You are watching the fight for the title you kept for so many years. It would be more worrying if you didn't feel a thing." Atem said.

Yugi gave him a sideways smile then looked out at the flying dragon being chased by a white spaceman. "It's not just that, heck it's not even just sadness. If I'm honest, it's fear."

"Fear?"

"Not the bad kind of fear, it's the anxiety that keeps me at the top of my game. The adrenaline that makes me want to fight at my full strength. The fear that makes me want to win and keep winning." Yugi said while keeping his eyes forward as to not attract the cameras' attention.

"Fear is good too."

"As I said it's not just that. It's a bit selfish but, I don't want to lose. It's funny because before I never cared about winning or losing but sitting here… I haven't officially lost in the eighteen years since I won this title from you. Yet, I feel like that streak is finally going to come to an end. I knew it was coming eventually, but actually being here is like sitting on the tracks of an oncoming train." This made Atem drop the act and turn to Yugi in surprise. Yugi briefly chanced a glance at his brother.

"Is that childish?" Yugi worriedly asked.

"No, not at all. It's a big thing to finally be broken…" Atem almost stammered, briefly remembering how important his winning streak used to be to him. He then noticed the cameras moving to point to Yugi and him. They must have noticed his surprise. He quickly faced forward again. When things were calm, he whispered out of the side of his mouth. "You really think one of these two can beat you?"

"Yes, I've known it since he-"

"OOHH a good move from Joey Wheeler! This might be the end folks!" This immediately got everyone's attention. Without any words passing between the group, they all got up and moved to the edge of the box. Each holding their breath as they looked at the clearing smoke.

* * *

Joey was breathing hard, he had only barely made it through his turn. He was down to 100 life points with only one trap card on the field and no spells in his hand. He had one advantage though, Red-Eyes Black Dragon. His partner was standing defiantly in front of Joey. The dragon had protected Joey last turn from Jaden's dreaded Neos and had actually destroyed it despite being 100 points weaker than the spaceman, it was all thanks to Graceful Dice.

"OOHH a good move from Joey Wheeler! This might be the end folks!" Joey couldn't help but chuckle at the announcer with the massive pompadour. This was far from over. He had destroyed all of Jaden's monsters, brought his life points to 100 too, and made it so the kid had no cards in his hand. All Jaden had was one trap card on the field. It looked good for Joey but if he had learned anything about Jaden in this duel, it was that this duelist knew how to get his monsters back on the field.

"Good move Joey! I really thought I had you there! I draw!" Jaden announced with a hearty laugh. He was clearly having the time of his life. Joey was too but he couldn't show it outwardly as well as Jaden could.

Jaden then pulled out what Joey hoped to be his last card. As Jaden looked over the card Joey noticed his frown. Joey let himself hope. If Jaden couldn't do anything this turn Joey would attack next turn and win. While he was hesitant about Jaden's trap, it had been on the field for a few turns now. Jaden had not activated it before when attacked so Joey guessed it could not be used for defense. This next turn he could do it, he really could be the next King of Games.

"Well this has been an amazing duel Joey, it really has." Jaden finally said. Joey snapped his attention back to his opponent. Was he really-? "But this must end," Jaden said almost sadly. He flipped his card around. It showed a purple O surrounded by similarly colored fire. "I activate O – Oversoul. This allows me to bring back a hero in the graveyard. Welcome back to earth, Elemental Hero Neos!" The crowd went crazy as a burst of otherworldly colors brought Neos back from the grave.

This was it, Joey had no way to power up Red-Eyes. Joey let his body slump as he saw his destruction. He then briefly glanced back up at the box. Everyone was standing there, cheering him on. They all worked so hard for him, even when he was in his dark place. Then Joey saw it, across the field was Seto in the close-up box. This nearly made Joey laugh. The great Kaiba had come all the way down for him? It was then that he truly felt how strong all their friendships were. He couldn't let this duel end like this.

"Before you declare dat attack I activate my trap card, Take One Chance! It lets me take a random card from my graveyard and play it now!" Joey had been hesitant to play this trap card since it had such a low chance of working, in fact, it might embarrass him more. Yet, his friends were there for him no matter what. Might as well go all out, for them. Joey waited for the random card to spit out of his graveyard.

'Please, be somthin' good. I've always called you lady luck but I know what you actually are. Please heart of the cards, help me out here.' Joey thought. The card popped out and Joey picked it up. He shakily looked at it with one eye opened. Once he read the card, he immediately let out a big whoop. He activated the trap card, Bottomless Trap Hole.

Jaden's eyes widened as Neos was destroyed once again in front of his eyes.

"It destroys any monster summoned that has 1500 attack point or more. Neos falls nicely into dat category, doesn't he?" Joey couldn't help but laugh in relief.

Everyone in the skybox cheered, even Yugi couldn't hide a grin. Jaden looked down at his duel disk and shook his head.

"Wow. This is why I duel, to witness feats such as this. I really am proud I got to fight you." Joey was about to grin back at Jaden when he saw the boy then activated his own trap card.

A pink beam shot out of the trap and hit Red-Eyes. The dragon's roar echoed across the stadium as it burst into pink pieces. The pieces went flying towards Jaden and went into his graveyard. Flying out came the reborn Neos.

"I activate Death and Rebirth. When my monster is destroyed during my turn, it destroys one of yours and brings back my lost monster." Jaden declared with a smile. "Go Neos!"

With a blast that shot wind across the stadium, Neos attacked Joey. Everyone fell quiet as Joey lost the last of his life points. Yugi looked down as the wind whipped his hair back, right at Jaden. Jaden looked up and found Yugi's eyes. He gave a determined smile which Yugi returned with a nod. Yugi had known it ever since Jaden had run headlong into him as a boy, and since the graduate battled both he and Atem, which ever truly came first in the timeline. Jaden would be the next King of Games. Before Jaden could walk away though, Yugi would be there to duel him with everything he had.


	34. Crimson

There was an hour break between the duel for the crown and the duel against the king. During that time Jaden was swarmed with reporters and bloggers needing his thoughts. He was the new King of Games after all. Neither his duel spirits or his academy friends couldn't save the Gentle Darkness host from what all pro duelist fear, the press. The reporters also wanted Yugi's thoughts but much to everyone's dismay he had disappeared. Yugi wanted some time alone to prepare, even from his family and friends. He did quickly meet up with Joey though and give him a great bear hug that nearly broke his friend's spine. Once he had made sure everyone else was ok, Yugi went into hiding.

As Yugi hid himself the others went to check out the many vendors around the stadium. Atem found he wasn't very interested in shopping or talking with his friends. That same feeling that he had labeled as the "duel jitters" from the night before still hung around him, getting much worse after Joey's and Jaden's duel. While Atem did his best to be involved with everyone, he still found himself spacing out only to briefly come back when someone spoke to him. This spacing out got to the point that Atem simply blinked and suddenly found himself on a picnic bench outside the stadium surrounded by most of the others. He didn't even remember how he got from the flamboyant vendors to here. No one noticed Atem surprise as they were all focused on Joey.

"AWW I can't believe it! I was dis close, DIS close!" Joey groaned as he drowned his sorrows in ketchup and fried foods.

"That battle was still amazing. No one will deny that you went all out for it. If it makes you feel any better at least you're still the godfather of games." Téa tried. Joey sighed and swallowed another handful in one bite. It wasn't that he was sad, he was disappointed. Trying for so many years to officially equal Yugi in pro dueling, to only then be surpassed by someone sixteen years his younger. He wasn't mad at Jaden, he absolutely deserved the crown, it was just human nature to be upset and Joey knew it. That's why he had his friends around, he wasn't going to bottle this up.

"I suppose dat's just life dough. What's the sayin'? 'Shoot for the moon and if you miss, you'll end up in the stars?' Well, I'm one big star if I do say so myself." Joey said to help cheer himself up. It also helped that he was surrounded by gifts and flowers from his fans wishing him well. Most he got after he had already lost. His fans were still behind him, just as his friends.

"You are absolutely right Wheeler. I would say you are one of the biggest balls of hot gas around here." Seto commented as he walked up to the group.

"Nyeh! I set myself up for dat one, didn't I?" Joey groaned as everyone snickered. Atem couldn't help but laugh too, but it was only a quick chuckle.

"You're not hungry Atem?" Téa asked. She had been sitting next to him on the bench. Everyone else was distracted by Seto's and Joey's incoming fight. Atem then noticed a plate of food in front of him that he had barely touched. Had he really spaced out that bad?

"Not really. I admit I've been feeling a bit off since last evening. Nothing bad, just jitters. Perhaps Yugi and I really are still connected somewhat." Atem joked as he pushed aside his food.

"I know that feeling, it's like my stomach is going to turn inside-out right before a big show or scene. I guess that feeling's why Yugi wanted some time alone. That just means we have to cheer even louder for him when the duel does come." Téa smiled. Atem gave a weary smile back to her, he had already used most of his energy to cheer during the last duel. He didn't know how much he had left in him.

"Maybe you should take a nap Uncle. Those always help me feel better." AJ said. The boy squeezed himself next to Atem and proceeded to take his leftover food and scarf it down. He had been doing this with any unattended food in the group.

"There is not really a place around here to do that," Atem said, letting the boy take his food without a fight.

"Yes, theref iv. Our VIP lounge iv filled witf comfy couches. Only Mom's in theref right now, she'v feeding Chell." AJ said in-between mouthfuls.

"Maybe that would be best. I keep losing my focus, that wouldn't be good for Yugi's duel." Atem said as he got up. He waved to everyone and walked around Seto's and Joey's verbal brawl. Once he had gotten out of the war zone, he quickly found his way back into the stadium. This was the biggest building Atem had ever been in and while he had an amazing sense of direction, even he was getting turned around and lost. The entire time Atem had to fight to stay on his feet. This feeling was quickly becoming more than just jitters. It felt much different from just fatigue, it was the need to lay down and do nothing, not even with the goal of sleep. Just do nothing. Right when Atem was getting frustrated with the building and his own body he turned a corner and saw a cameraman and a familiar interviewer.

"Wow, I can't believe you actually got an interview with Atem Muto! He's been one of the hardest kids to catch these last few months."

"I know! The brother of Yugi Muto, an orphan, a duelist, and by Sector Security reports, quite the trouble maker. I thought this interview would have been primetime material! But when you actually talk to the kid, he's as closed mouth as a clam."

"What did you focus on?"

"I tried to get him to talk about his hardships growing up, only to then find out he was the King of Games's brother, but nothing!"

"Hmm, maybe you could catch him again. This time you should try going for the stuck in his brother's shadow angle. Did you try asking how he sees the King of Games? Maybe we can spin it into a new rivalry!"

Atem absolutely did not want another interview, he barely survived the first one. He immediately turned and ran in the opposite direction, right into a crowd of fans wearing tri-colored wigs and magician costumes.

"IT'S ATEM!" Someone screamed. Everyone immediately turned to face Atem, he could almost see the crazed sparkle in their eyes. Atem started running again and this time he was being chased by some of Yugi's most rabid fans. Atem had no idea where to turn. He was almost debating about crawling into an air duct when he was suddenly yanked out of the hallway and into a large luxury room. The door slammed shut right as the fans turned the corner. They didn't see where Atem turned and even if they did, they couldn't follow. He was in the VIP lounge.

"Thanks, Rebecca. I don't know what I would have done without you." Atem exhaled as he leaned on the door. Rebecca gave a triumphant smile. She was about to say something when a white blur came flying past her and hit Atem right in the face with a squeak.

"Chell! You don't throw Ba-Ba at people." Rebecca scolded the toddler in a baby pen. Chell wasn't saddened in the least as she continued to laugh and clap.

"It's fine, I much prefer this to her crying." Atem chuckled as he picked up the Scapegoat and walked over to the toddler. Chell put her arms up, signaling she wanted to be carried. Atem happily obliged and held the girl close to him as he handed the plush goat back to the girl. Atem was expecting her to throw it at him again since she enjoyed that game so much, but this time she didn't. She instead pushed the toy into Atem's cheek with all the force her baby body could muster.

"Aww, Ba-Ba's giving you a kiss." Rebecca cooed. Atem smiled and sat down on one of the overstuffed couches. They were comfy. Chell then wiggled down onto his lap and started sucking on Ba-Ba's horn. This was so different from how she had reacted to Atem originally. Before she would cry whenever he got a little too close, now she was just as comfortable around him as the rest of her family. In fact, most people were like that now. He noticed that he had none of his threatening aurae anymore, it seemed at have disappeared around the time that he 'died.'

Atem started bouncing his legs to make the girl giggle. Her laughter was a little too high pitched to be a comfortable sound but Atem didn't care. As he did this, he noticed something on the ground near his feet. A card sat there with an angelic girl in praying position, The Ties of Friendship.

"Hey, there it is!" Rebecca nearly yelled as she quickly scooped up the card. Atem was surprised at the great shape the near twenty-year-old card was in, it looked brand new without even the print dulling. Rebecca looked over the card and after making sure it was fine, placed it in a card holder she wore as a necklace. She tried to shut the necklace's tiny swinging door, but it refused to close fully.

"This old card holder sure is breaking down." She sighed.

"You took good care of that card inside it," Atem commented.

"Of course, it connects me to Yugi more than any wedding ring could," Rebecca said matter-of-factly. Atem titled his head and Rebecca sighed. "I'm sorry, that was a bit sharp. I'm just a bit stressed with this tournament. I swear if I didn't have Yugi to calm me down I would have pulled out all my hair years ago." Rebecca chuckled.

"Speaking of Yugi, have you seen him recently?" Atem asked.

"Yes, he was in here a little while ago before he went off to truly be alone," Rebecca said as she gestured to Yugi's backpack that was leaning on the couch. She then sat next to Atem and took Chell into her own lap.

"That is good. We were all wondering how he was doing. Though, we understand why he isn't out right now." Atem said while gesturing to a window where they could see fans and reporters alike going crazy. "I still haven't figured out how Yugi does it. He's absolutely terrified by them yet when he is interacting with them or any opponent, he's so…"

"Respectful?" Rebecca guessed. Atem nodded. "That's one of the amazing things about Yugi. For most people, they only give respect to others when it is earned, but Yugi, he gives respect to everyone regardless." Rebecca continued.

"That is something I've never quite figured out how to do," Atem said. "I suppose that is one part of my pride I've never been able to tone down."

"It's hard, there's a reason Yugi can make a friend out of almost anyone. Heck, just look at me. Absolutely no one else would have ever given me a chance. Especially when they already had someone amazing." Rebecca said as she pulled Chell closer to her. "Yet, Yugi did..."

"You do not give yourself enough credit. You're smart, determined and you never stand down from what you believe in." Atem said.

Rebecca shook her head and then looked down at the Ties of Friendship card. "Thank you Atem, it means a lot to hear that from you, but you would know better than anyone else that I used to be a monster of a person." Rebecca chuckled at the thought of her old self. Her eyes looking far off at past memories.

"I was smarter than any kid my age but not quite to the level of adults, so for years, I couldn't connect with anyone. My loneliness only continued to grow when both my parents died. By my grandpa's suggestion I tried making friends with Duel Monsters but… since I often dueled people much older than me, each felt embarrassed to lose to me. Most covered their embarrassment with harsh words." Rebecca sighed. "No one ever respected the loud mouth brat of a girl. I was expecting the same treatment when I went flying off to Japan to get back what I thought was mine. Then Yugi came along, he looked past my brave facade. So, in return for my rudeness he gave kindness and most of all, he respected me. The first person to give me that in a very long time." Rebecca said. She then looked to her side to see Atem still sitting there. She immediately looked embarrassed. "Sorry for rambling, I guess I forgot you were even there."

"It is fine, but this does lead to a question I've been wondering for a while. How did Yugi and you end up together?" Atem asked.

Rebecca sat up in surprise. "Yugi hasn't told you yet? Well, it's not much of a great romance so I can see why it hasn't come up yet. I just thought you guys already shared everything with each other."

Atem shook his head.

"Well ok, I've already told this story to AJ's ad nauseum, might as well make sure you know it too. We met up again sometime after he broke up with Téa. He wanted to hire some programmers to help with a game idea he had. He contacted me and I immediately took the offer, less for the job and more to make it up to Yugi." Rebecca gave an embarrassed smile. "I hadn't seen him in person in years and I wanted to prove to him that I wasn't the silly kid with a crush anymore. I was a mature woman! I was the most industrious worker he had. I came early and left late, I only ever talked about the project and pushed everyone else to do better. I knew about Yugi's break up and I didn't want him to have to worry about anything job related as he worked on his social life.

"One day he pulled me aside to have a private talk with me. I thought I had messed up somehow and was prepared to apologize profusely. It turned out I was terrifying the two other programmers Yugi managed to hire. He was also scared, scared that I was going to push myself to burn out. He made me swear to go have fun on my weekend. I joked that maybe he should come along to make sure I was relaxed enough and he agreed. I don't think he realized I had asked him out on a date until later." Rebecca laughed. Atem could imagine Yugi's face when he realized what he had agreed to, that thought made Atem laugh too.

"I am guessing it grew from there?" Atem said. Rebecca shrugged, red tinting her cheeks.

"Yes, it did. We continued to work on projects together, I was only supposed to be a temporary programmer but I ended up staying. The entire time we grew closer and closer. He made sure I chilled out and I helped him put his foot down when he needed to. Now we are here, married for ten years with two beautiful kids and a successful franchise. To make it even better you're back with us."

Atem rubbed the back of his head. It always amazed him when he thought about the wonderful lives his friends had after he left. A life that didn't involve shadows or monsters would always be strange to Atem, but he was glad his dear friends got to live such lives.

"You've really made Yugi happy these last few months. I have to thank you for that, and for protecting him his entire youth. He would have been in a lot more trouble if you were never around." Rebecca said.

"I would do it again and again." Atem smiled. Chell started to get fussy so Rebecca got up. It looked like she was about to walk out of the lounge when she stopped. She remained silent a moment as she looked down at her necklace.

"We really are going to miss you when you leave again. Yugi especially. While these last few months have been some of his happiest it's also been… it's like he's being pulled in two directions. He wants to enjoy having you here, but he also wants to prepare himself for when you leave. He never shows this stuff with others but… what kind of wife would I be if he couldn't share his deepest worries with me?" She then turned her head slightly so she could look at Atem. "It's truly going to hurt when you leave. Is there any way, anyway at all that you could sta…" The look Atem gave her made Rebecca stop dead mid-sentence. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have asked."

"It is fine," Atem said flatly, holding back a wave of emotions.

"…It's only twenty more minutes until the duel. You want to come with me?" Rebecca tried.

"No, I'm going to close my eyes for a bit. I'll be at the skybox in a minute or two, don't worry about me."

"Ok." Rebecca then picked up her backpack and closed up Chell's playpen. Before she left, she looked back to Atem one more time.

"Just so you know. We are all here for you, whatever you need we'll immediately be there for you."

"I know." And with that Atem was alone.

* * *

This was wrong.

Rafael was in front of Atem but he wasn't in his dueling outfit like Atem had seen him in the tournament. He was wearing all grey with a green stone around his neck. Atem then looked at the desert field around them. They were both surrounded by the intersecting green lines of the Seal of Orichalcos, yet something was off about it. It wasn't it's usually slime green color, it almost had a purple tone to it. Atem couldn't focus on that for long as he felt himself yell an attack. Directly in front of him, and at the same time was him, was the Nameless Pharaoh with that awful seal stamped on his forehead.

This was wrong. He was passed this, he fixed his nightmares yet here he was again. No… he refused. He refused to reenact one of his worst decisions!

"Enough!" Both the pharaoh and Atem yelled, at the same time clutching their heads. Then the separation between the two entities disappeared, there was only Atem.

"Not to worry! Someone's gonna lose in this next round, and this nightmare'll be over!" Rafael yelled back.

Atem could see it, the heart of the cards was with Rafael. He knew it even before Rafael announced Celestial Sword. Atem watched in silent horror as all his monsters came back from the grave to attack. They all floated ahead of him, translucent. Even then Atem could still see their disappointment and betrayal. He didn't yell to the duel spirits this time, he simply stood, waiting for what he knew he deserved. The spirits flew back without so much as a sound, all turning their backs on him. The incoming sword swipe shattered everything in its path, the Seal of Orichalcos making the attack real, but the pain could never amount to what was coming next.

Atem felt it as he lost his life points, Yugi's soul coming up behind him. Atem was weak, he wouldn't be able to stop Yugi from pushing him out of the seal. Yugi, the sweet boy that had trusted and befriended the insane spirit inside him. Yugi, the teen that never gave up on his friend or enemies. Yugi, the man that had a loving family and successful future ahead of him. He deserved so much more than to be sealed away. He couldn't let it happen.

"Pharaoh I won't let this-What?!" Atem, in one movement, turned to the side and used Yugi's momentum to push the boy forward.

"What are you doing?!" Yugi cried as he was pushed out of the seal.

"I won't let you do this. Not again." Atem whispered, tears rimmed his eyes as he felt the seal close around him. The seal's green color suddenly turned a neon violet as Atem felt himself falling. He almost accepted the weightless feeling until he heard an earthshaking roar.

The world suddenly crumbled around Atem. Pieces of the desert and blue sky flew upwards into a crimson atmosphere. Even with the scenery flying upwards Atem continued to fall down into seemingly nothing. Everything below the red sky was in complete shadow, including the floor. The indistinguishable floor came up too quickly for Atem to prepare. The landing hurt, but with how fast he seemed to be falling it should have hurt more. Atem was able to push himself to his elbows fairly soon after the fall. Everything was deathly silent. Death Valley was completely gone and replace with only shadows.

"That was odd." Came a calm voice ahead of Atem. He recognized that voice. He immediately looked up, right into the golden eyes of the Crimson Dragon.

As Atem reoriented himself, the dragon studied the pharaoh. The dragon had to wait for Atem to fall asleep before he could be contacted from the afterlife. That was just a general rule for contacting the living world. The dragon had gotten impatient though and tried to bring the pharaoh in sooner, making him feel the need to lay down. What the dragon hadn't expected was that Atem would immediately start dreaming as soon as he fell asleep and interrupt his connection. What was even odder was that the pharaoh looked horrible, his clothes were covered in dirt and there were tears rimming his eyes. Mortal dreams should not have that kind of power.

"It has been a while Pharaoh, how is being alive again?" The dragon said, attempting to calm Atem down. He needed the pharaoh level-headed.

Atem immediately got to his knees and bowed to the cosmic god. The Crimson Dragon felt different from the god cards Atem had wielded so often. Maybe it was because those gods were in card form, but Atem never felt as intimidated by them. This dragon, this god felt like it was going to explode at any moment with pure energy. No wonder it took multiple people to wield it.

"You do not need to do that. You did not bow to me when I was in my human form and you do not need to do it now." The great dragon said. Atem stood up straight and faced the dragon.

"Greetings Crimson Dragon." Atem said, not really knowing what else to say. It sounded like the dragon sighed but Atem couldn't be sure.

"I have heard from your servant Mahad that you are trying to fight the Earthbound Immortals. A noble task, but you must have figured out by now that there are already others destined for the duty." The dragon said. Atem quickly nodded, praying that he hadn't offended the god. "You were not wrong in your course. We need to deal with these Immortal now, but sadly the Signers are not ready. A few have not been even born yet. We need time."

Seven glowing lights suddenly appeared around Atem's feet. Atem watched in amazement as the light slowly grew into seven golden items. Atem looked up to the Crimson Dragon as if asking for permission. The dragon nodded and Atem kneeled down and picked up a very familiar upside-down pyramid connected to a chain.

"Five millennia ago you and your priests used these items to lock Zorc Necrophades away temporarily. I believe I have found a way for you to do it again, this time for the Earthbound Immortals."

Atem immediately dropped the Millennium puzzle like it was burning. He couldn't go back to that, to being locked away in the puzzle.

"Do not worry little pharaoh. You will not be locked away in the puzzle." The dragon chuckled as if he could read Atem's mind "Instead of having to rely on your own power, you will have me as a power source. It will be enough to lock away the remaining Earthbound Immortals and your spirit. This time though you will be locked away in the afterlife, just as if you had died. I will provide the extra power needed to lock your soul in a place as massive as the afterlife instead of a small item. You will return to your job as paradise pharaoh and can be with your family again. This spell will only last about seventeen years, still three years early, but that is all the time my Signers need. The Earthbound Immortals will be locked away in the Netherworld during the seventeen years and will only resurface when the spell is finished. At the same time, your spirit will be freed too, but by doing this you will have helped 'saved the world' allowing your soul to rest in your paradise once again."

"But how will I even conduct this ceremony? Before I needed skilled sorceries including myself." Atem asked before getting his hopes up to high. It felt like he had to hold together a crumbling brick wall just to keep his voice steady.

"Again, I will provide that. All I need you to do now is bring these items to the rift that the Zero Reverse made. There we will be able to reconnect thanks to said rift and finish the ceremony. You will be back in the afterlife in less than a day."

Atem looked up the dragon with renewed hope. He could finally do it, he could finally get back to the afterlife. He couldn't find the words to speak. Was it really that simple? The dragon then continued.

"I apologize that you have to walk the items physically there. It is too dangerous in the afterlife at the moment for me to freely carry them around. Yes, even for a god." Atem then faintly heard booms in the background. The ground around him shook slightly. "I do not have much time. The Immortals have most likely figured out my plan and are trying to stop me. Before I end this connection, do you agree to this proposal?" The dragon said with a growl.

"Of course!" Atem said as he swiftly got to his feet. The dragon's golden eyes scanned him. There was no way for the pharaoh to read its expression.

"I apologize, that growl was not directed you. I am the only thing keeping this connection together and with the Earthbound Immortals attacking, it is getting difficult. I do not mind keeping it up though if you wish to negotiate. I am happy to change things around if you do not want to be in the afterlife. I am sure I could lock you…"

"I am fine! This is a great plan. I'm just a little shaken from before, that's all." Atem yelled. He felt a tear that had been building in his eye since his dream finally rolled down his cheek. He quickly wiped it away.

"That dream must have been bad if it has shaken you so." The dragon said.

"It is fine, I've been having them a great deal. Just a side effect of being mortal and nearly dying I believe." Atem said.

At Atem's words the dragon jerked away with almost fear in its eyes, if gods could show fear. The dragon then shot off into the sky, circling above him. Atem had to kneel down just to stop the wind the dragon was creating from bowling him over. As he crouched, Atem felt a familiar sensation. Quickly, all his memories of being alive again flashed through his mind. The dragon then dove at Atem, its massive head only stopping inches from Atem.

"YOU DID NOT JUST NEARLY DIE, YOU DIED!" The dragon roared. Atem could only huddle closer to the ground as the dragon god roared. "HOW DARE YOU TAKE THIS BOY'S BODY… You are… You are not a Dark Signer." The dragon breathed as it pulled away. Atem pulled out of his ball as he looked at the dragon. It was pacing back and forth in the air.

"This is impossible, once an Earthbound Immortal chooses a host and the host agrees the Immortal is in control. There is no going back." The dragon muttered. Atem gathered all the courage he had and stood up.

"Yes, an Earthbound Immortal did try to turn me, but I fought it off. Yugi even confirmed that I was free." Atem said. The dragon jerked its head and stared. Atem remained strong in front of its gaze, he had to prove he was no Dark Signer.

"How?" The dragon growled, its calm voice now bristling with energy.

"When I realized what was happening to me, I fought it off with all the shadow magic I possessed."

"That would not have worked. The only way you could have even gotten shadow magic was with the Earthbound Immortals' powers. There are no other dark entities strong enough."

"The Gentle Darkness seemed to work." Atem said. This made the dragon float back in surprise.

"Of course, Jaden must have grown much stronger these last few years… You are very lucky Atem." The dragon breathed. "That still does not explain how you are standing here. Once an Earthbound Immortal gets in a body it will not come out with simple shadow magic. When you two fought it should have destroyed your body." The ground once again began to shake, this time more violently. Atem looked up at the dragon for an explanation but it was still staring at him.

"You know what? It is most likely the same reason I can use only you for this ritual. When you locked away yourself the first time it changed your soul permanently. It is the reason you could inhabit Yugi's body without your two souls clashing or send a bit of yourself to the afterlife instead of a little piece of paper… Let us see if I have enough power left over to do this."

The dragon then closed its eyes and rested the tip of its tail on Atem's head. Atem suddenly felt his entire body go numb. A moment later he collapsed to the ground as soon as the dragon pulled its tail away. Atem slowly raised his head, just in time to see a large violet condor outline glow on the ground below him. It looked exactly like the Nazca line for the condor.

"As I thought. There is still an empty part of your soul, left over from making room for Yugi's soul. When you won the fight, the condor squeezed its soul in there. Let me guess before your 'death' you had an odd aura about you. Then after your 'death', that aura disappeared?" The dragon asked. Atem found himself reaching down and grabbing the Millennium Puzzle as the dragon spoke. He ran his thumb over the familiar details of the gold puzzle as he thought back.

"Yes, I also had these horrible nightmares. Before I could never remember them, but then I died and now I remember them intensely. This last dream has been the only one I've had in a while though." Atem admitted.

"Hmm, I am guessing those dreams were Wiraqocha Rasca trying to find out your weaknesses, poking and prodding at your memories to find the best way to break you. Before, the aura was the beast itself trying to get into you. Afterward it was inside you, hiding, so others no longer felt its dark power. It wants its Dark Signer back and by how powerfully I just felt it, I think it found your weakness. Wiraqocha Rasca must have been waiting for the perfect time to attack you again. When I contacted you, it must have had to speed up its plans and try to retake you before I found out about it. Thus, this most recent dream."

Atem stared at the violet outlines on the ground, then the puzzle in his hand. In all his dreams there was always something violet in them. This entire time he had another being inside him. Waiting for its moment to strike again. How had he not felt it? The ground suddenly shook again and the booming was getting louder. "Does this ruin the ritual idea!?" Atem yelled over the crashes.

"No, if you stay in control then the ceremony will even help separate you two. I would separate you now but I don't have the power at the moment. I have to save it for the ceremony. You must hurry! Do not fall asleep again or Wiraqocha Rasca might finally take control!" The dragon roared. It looked like the pressure was increasing on the dragon. Atem quickly gathered the Millennium Items in his arms then looked back at the god.

"I will do as you have asked and I will not let this thing take me!" Atem declared. The dragon nodded. Atem didn't know what else to do so he started walking away from the Crimson Dragon.

"Wait, one more thing I should know! You said Yugi checked to make sure you were not a Dark Signer. The only spell to do that is the one I just did, it is a high-level spell. Yugi is nowhere near trained enough." The dragon called.

Atem turned back and faced the dragon. "That is something I have been wondering too. Yugi grew much stronger than a man that was near dead. He also found he has these 'epiphanies' that allow him to know things no one could figure out. If I am honest the entire time, he does these things, it feels like standing in front of the Higher Ups." Atem said. The dragon seemed just as confused but another boom made the dragon roar in pain.

"No time! Get to that rift and finish this!" The dragon roared as Atem felt himself being thrown.

* * *

When Atem opened his eyes, he found himself alone in the lounge. He sat up immediately, only to hear the sounds of metal bouncing across the floor. Atem looked down to see he still had the Millennium Items. Atem shot off the couch and collected the pieces. He frantically looked around for something to put them in and found his gold and black backpack. Atem unceremoniously shoved the items inside and closed the zipper. This bag was already heavy enough but Atem didn't have time to pack better.

He ran out of the lounge; the halls were completely empty. He looked around only to then hear the cheers of thousands of people. Atem, not knowing where else to go, ran up a set of stairs. Atem soon found himself right in the middle of filled bleachers. Everyone was cheering as Yugi and Jaden took the stage down below.

Yugi.

It felt like Atem's world fell out beneath him. He hadn't had time to think about it before but he, he was leaving Yugi. Leaving everyone. He was finally going back. Atem looked up to the skybox where he could see his friends cheering, they hadn't noticed him in the mass of people.

Atem stumbled back down the stairs, running his hand through his hair the entire time. Should he tell them? Did he even have time? Atem could now almost feel the dark presence beside him, waiting for its chance. Atem stopped outside the lounge and looked inside. Yugi still had his bag in there.

' That wasn't smart of him, it could be stolen at any moment.' Atem thought. He then let out a strangled laugh at his thought. There was so much to worry about and yet here he was scolding Yugi's untidiness. Atem then remembered what all his friends promised, they would drop whatever they were doing to help him. If he told them what he was about to do, they would go as far as to stop the tournament to help him. Maybe Yugi would just forfeit the match. That would ruin everything for Yugi, this was supposed to be his big moment.

No, Atem refused to interrupt his friends' lives any longer. Atem quickly took out a small piece of paper and with shaky hands wrote a goodbye note. It wasn't good enough, not even close, but Atem had to leave. He would apologize to them later, much later. When they were all past being old and grey and had such amazingly long lives that Atem would finally only be a footnote in them.

Atem put the note, his deck and his phone on Yugi's backpack. He wouldn't need them where he was going. He almost put his gaming system there too but found his hand refused to grasp it. It was selfish but Atem couldn't let go of Yugi's game. He sighed and closed up his bag, quickly slinging it over his shoulder. He took one last glance at Yugi's backpack and then ran out. He continued to run and didn't stop running until he found himself at the docks. He had to buy himself a ticket to the Satellite. He had to go to the first Ener-D reactor.


	35. The Fight Begins

Yugi stood at the edge of a large doorway. Outside was the dueling stage with its thousands of millions of viewers. Jaden was already in the center giving his speech. Jaden's infectious energy spread across the stadium and the world like an excitable disease. Yugi couldn't help but smile as he watched the King of Games accept his new title.

This was the thing Jaden had been working towards since his first years at Duel Academy. Back then Yugi knew that Jaden was indeed a great duelist, but he had been a little worried that the boy was too immature to take the title. That fear was put to rest many years ago, Jaden's life was filled with many adventures to help him grow. Now, while the boy was still very easy going, he was mature. Yugi then shook his head. Jaden was not a boy, twenty-one was certainly an adult. Yugi and his friends were just getting old. More of a reason to pass on the title he supposed. Jaden was young, energetic, good a dueling, amazing with duel spirits, and knew well the dark side of duels. He was perfect to bear the responsibilities of being the King of Games in a world where dueling was everything. Yugi was glad he was receiving the title.

"But you still want to defeat him utterly." Gandora cut into Yugi's mind. Yugi turned back to face the towering dragon.

"I thought you agreed to not read my deep thoughts anymore." Yugi mentally said.

"I wasn't, you were just thinking so loud that our connection couldn't help but pick it up." Gandora said as she crossed her scaled arms.

Yugi sighed, he remembered back to when he had this problem with Atem. It was always an interesting argument whether a thought was in the deep mindspace or open for all to read. Either way, it was a fight Yugi usually lost, with Atem and Gandora.

"Don't worry Master! We always try our best to not delve too deep into your thoughts. There's nothing interesting there anyway. Just game coding and bills. Do humans think of anything else, or is it just you?" Dark Magician Girl giggled as she floated up next to Yugi. Gandora began a snort filled guffaw as Yugi facepalmed.

While Gandora was Yugi's true spirit partner (as she lived with Yugi), Dark Magician Girl still loved to hang out with Yugi or any mortal that could see her. Especially after her world was saved from the Leviathan. Yugi had to admit he felt much better with both spirits here beside him. While Gandora never left, Dark Magician Girl was the ruler of the spellcaster and fairy part of the duel monsters world. She could only ever come to his side during duels or important occasions. Making moments like this even more special.

"Ok, you got me." Yugi sighed in his thoughts. Dark Magician Girl reached over and hugged Yugi

"Oh, don't be like that, I'm just trying to cheer you up for the duel. You know you always duel better when in a good mood." She said and Yugi couldn't help but smiled.

Yugi then looked back half expecting to see his third duel spirit, Kuriboh. Meeting him only a few months ago had made Yugi briefly forget that he hadn't seen the puffball in his world in many years. Duel spirits grew old too, and Kuriboh's species was especially short-lived.

"Don't be sad. I'm sure Kuriboh is watching us now, right alongside your friends and family in the afterlife. I can imagine him now, he'll be absolutely bursting with excitement at the thought of his card being played in this duel." Dark Magician Girl quickly cut into Yugi's saddening thoughts.

"Probably to the annoyance of Tristan or my mother. She always disliked brown hairy things." Yugi chuckled as he imagined Kuriboh bouncing on everyone like he had done while Yugi was in the afterlife. While that thought was light-hearted, Yugi couldn't help feel a knot form in his throat as he imagined his gone friends and family. The two spirits beside him immediately felt Yugi's sadness.

"You still have his card in this new deck of yours, right?" Dark Magician Girl asked as she started to reach down towards Yugi's duel belt. She was less interested in his answer and more focused on distracting him.

"Hey! My soft hatchling wants the deck to be a secret. You'll just have to wait like everyone else." Gandora growled.

"Oh, come on Dora. You know what's in the deck."

"That's because I was actually there to watch it being made. What were you doing during that time? Making sure that fairies had enough fluff in their pillows?"

"I actually have a job to do little dragon. What are you doing all day? Making sure you count the same number of Sleepy Sheep in Yugi's yard?" Dark Magician Girl snapped as she floated up to Gandora's face.

While Yugi loved having both spirits together, arguments like this always started when the two were in the same room together. The rivalry between spellcasters and dragons ran too deep. Though, he did suppose this was better than when Seto's Blue-Eyes came into the same room as the two. Then Yugi was forced to witness Gandora attempting to flirt and Dark Magician Girl being her wingwoman. Yugi quickly shook that horrifying thought out of his head and yelled to the two spirits in front of him.

"Hey now! Girls. Girls!" Yugi verbally shouted to get the two's attention. Both immediately stopped and turned to him. He then continued on in his mind. "Let's not start this now. I have needed both your powers and wisdom these many years. You two are remarkable duel monsters and I am proud to have you by my side. This duel coming up is the official end to all the fights and duels we've fought together. This is might be our swan song and I don't want such an amazing moment to be ruined by you two fighting."

The two guiltily looked to each other, then to the crowd outside. Dark Magician Girl instantly floated back to the ground and gave an apologetic bow to Yugi and Gandora. Yugi waited for Gandora to apologize in return but the great dragon remained still. Yugi was about to say something when both he and Dark Magician Girl were suddenly scooped up in a giant Gandora hug. The power and love squeezed into this hug were enough to put Yugi's own bear hugs to shame.

"You guys are the greatest beloveds a dragon could have!" Gandora cried.

"Eck- Love you too Dora." Dark Magician Girl squeaked as the dragon continued to crush the two.

Yugi was glad that there was no one around that could see him, or else they would be very worried at his abrupt ability to float, and his sudden need to hug the air with all his might. They were all quiet, other than Gandora's occasional sniffles, simply enjoying this rare moment together. The moment had to end though. A loud cheer from the stadium outside drew Yugi's attention. It was time for the final duel. Gandora reluctantly put the two back on the floor. While Dark Magician Girl took a moment to regain her breath, Yugi simply nodded to the two and strode out into the stadium.

The roar of the crowd was deafening. Nothing that Yugi wasn't used to, but it was still a little unnerving. In the middle of the stadium was Jaden, smiling with his own small army of duel spirits around him. Some of his duel spirits were trying to look threatening as Yugi came closer. One even went as far as to throw an insult Yugi's way. Yugi smiled at the creature. Behind him, Dark Magician Girl twirled her scepter in the air to create a flurry of sparks, and Gandora smashed her fists together with a roar to equal the level of the crowd's screams. The duel spirit shrunk behind Jaden and the new King of Games couldn't help but laugh.

"Looks like the duel as already begun for our spirits," Jaden said (making sure to cover his microphone before speaking)

Gandora happily growled in response. "It is what I live for. I can't wait to ground you into dust again, hero wielder. And this time my attack won't be going right through you."

Yugi gave an almost embarrassed smile but Jaden didn't mind. He had heard Gandora's trash talk before.

"Time for me to really earn this title. Though all the duel before this were amazing, I have been really wanting to fight you again." Jaden said as he and Yugi switched decks to shuffle them. Then each walked to opposite sides of the arena.

"I am just as excited, Jaden. I hope you are prepared because I have to agree with Gandora on this one, though not as violently. I want to win with all my heart and soul. Let's see if the next generation really has what it takes to beat me." Yugi let himself grin. A smile that his friends in the skybox found to be much like Atem's.

Yugi briefly looked up to his friends as he pulled out five cards. He saw most of his family and all his friends at the edge of the box cheering for him. Joey was so close to the edge that every one of his enthusiastic cheers nearly made him lose balance. The one person Yugi did not see, however, was Atem. His face briefly frowned as he looked around for his brother. His eyes briefly rested on Rebecca who gave Yugi a shrug. She then put her hands together and rested her head on them to represent sleep.

'Atem's sleeping? That's not like him at all.' Yugi thought. Yugi's train of thought was quickly derailed by a count down from the crowd. Yugi simply shook his head and focused on the new King. He was not retiring without a fight.

* * *

There was almost no one down by the docks. Just one dinky and rusted boat was still in service to the Satellite. Atem yanked up the hood on his jacket and pulled it as far forward as his hair would let it. If someone really looked at him they could immediately recognize him as Atem Muto, but no one was really looking. All, even the workers, were focused on the duel between Jaden and Yugi. A pink and fluffy Blue-Eyes could have flown by and no one would have lifted an eye. This worked perfectly for Atem as he went up to the automated ticket machine, paid for the ticket with the emergency money put in his backpack (another thing he would apologize later to Yugi for), and quickly flashed his city ID as he walked onto the boat. The guard barely glanced at the ID long enough to check to make sure it matched the ticket.

The boat to the Satellite was self-piloting, thus there were even fewer workers on the ship. Those workers that were on board focused almost entirely on the small TV attached to the boat's cabin. The other passengers were just as glued to the TV as the sailors. After Atem got on he didn't pay much attention to the people around him or even the TV, he was focused on the being he now felt at his side.

It was always there. It felt like Atem could a step back at any moment and bump into the thing. Yet, every time Atem turned there was nothing. The hairs on the back of his neck were constantly standing on end. 'Was this what others felt with my threatening aura? …Was this what Yugi felt the first few months after I awoke?' Atem thought. What made Atem visible shiver was the feeling that the thing beside him nodded. Atem pulled away from the crowd in the middle of the ship and leaned on the boat railing. He needed some air.

Atem watched as the tall buildings of New Domino city slowly grew smaller in the distance. The light of the setting sun making the buildings have a halo of red and orange. Seeing the city disappear made it more real to Atem. It felt like half his heart was still on the mainland and every inch the boat moved stretched it painfully farther. What added to the pain was the cheers and shouts coming from the TV. Hearing Yugi's voice dancing through the air as he fought his first few turns made Atem want to curl into a dark corner. The Condor only made those feelings worse. It wanted Atem to give up, to stop this foolish mission and stay with Yugi, to stay with it.

"No," Atem growled to seemingly no one in particular.

He turned away from the city and slid to the floor. He had to distract himself. He started rummaging through the backpack for Yugi's game when a gold gleam caught his eye. The Millennium Puzzle seemed to glow in Atem's backpack thanks to the sunset. Atem's eyes held on the gold pyramid. His prison and his support all in one. Atem reached in and pulled out the puzzle, making sure to hide his other golden items from view. From what he had seen these last few months the Millennium Items were a known fact, be it by only true dueling fanatics. Thankfully, the items' soul-shattering powers wasn't known. Atem supposed that they were simply used in enough tournaments for people to notice that only the best duelist seemed to have them. On days such as today, many people added smaller versions to their outfits. No one would question Atem's, hopefully.

Atem studied the puzzle, occasionally turning it over in his hand. This really was the Millennium Puzzle that had bonded Yugi to himself for so many years. Atem could still feel his slight connection to it. In the afterlife, Atem had worn this puzzle with a rope around his neck. Now though, a chain was run through the puzzle's loop. Atem felt the chain and after finding it strong, placed it around his neck. The puzzle rested in the same place it always did. Atem was surprised by how good it felt to wear it again. It was just a puzzle, it had no shadows, no power. Yet, when Atem felt the familiar weight against his chest again he was suddenly able to breathe fully. His first real breathes since he woke up this afternoon.

"Hey, that's a nice necklace ya got kid. Perfect day to wear it right?" Came a voice to Atem's right. There was standing a very big man with bright red hair with two shorter men beside him. Atem looked away from the group.

"I don't want any trouble," Atem mumbled.

"Hey, we're not here to cause any. I just noticed a lone teen slumped in a corner. Not someone ya usually see traveling on a boat like this." The man said while gesturing around at the grime and rust. "Listen kid, if your running away this is not the place to go to. I know your situation might seem bad at home or at school but there's a better way. The Satellite is a dead end, once ya go in you'll never come out."

Atem let out a small chuckle and then stood up, still facing away from the group and leaving his backpack on the floor. "Do not worry about me. I'm not running away. Trust me, if I wanted to run away I'd be heading in the opposite direction. The Satellite is where I'm meant to be." Atem said as he pulled his hood lower around his head.

The man looked at his friends and nodded to each. The two walked back to the TV. The lone man then walked to Atem's side and looked out over the railing. Atem was expecting him to try and see under his hood, but the man kept his eyes to the sea.

"Well, I suppose it's good you're so confident of yourself. You'll need that in the Satellite. I'm Ren Dawson by the way."

All of Atem's instincts were telling him to stay away from this stranger, but where would he go? Back to being alone with the Condor? Atem felt like Ren's voice helped drowned out the Immortal's whisperings. Atem kept his gaze away from Ren but stayed by his side, even leaning over the railing too.

"I'm Atem."

Ren glanced to Atem with a bit of surprise. "Atem… with a name like that, you must be Egyptian huh? Then again, maybe your parents just really liked duel monsters? Am I close? There are a few Atems in my son's class so I know I'm not going off of nothing here."

"Is the Satellite really that bad?" Atem cut in, not wanting to answer those questions.

Ren shrugged. The two turned their gazes to the smoggy skies over the ever-nearing island.

"Not bad enough for the city to fix. They moved all the unsightly factories to the island. Making it a good place if you're looking for a job, like me." Ren said. "The downside is that there is no real infrastructure over there. I'm sure they've already taken your deck so ya know there is nothing duel monsters related allowed. They say it's because 'the holographic system is still being fixed and they don't want someone sneaking a duel and making it worse.' I say it's bull, but there's nothing we can do about it. That just means people have to go back to… the old way of settling differences. Meaning more Sector Security."

That immediately made Atem lift his head as he stared at the closing-in island. If Security found him they might not be as lenient about letting him walk around freely, especially since he had no good reason for coming to the island. He doubted they would take going to the still somewhat active Ener-D reactor as a valid response. Atem then glanced at Ren and noticed the man studying him.

"Thank you for warning me. I can take care of myself." Atem quickly said, trying to get the man's eyes off him.

"Hmm, ya know then that most of the people on this island are pretty desperate. While they have job security, they definitely want to be other places. Just take me for example. I am going to it because my original business was destroyed in the Zero Reverse. I have a wife and son and need money that New Domino can no longer give me. If I don't start paying my debts my family's going to be forced out here anyways. I am coming by choice before that happens so there's a chance they won't have too. I would give almost anything not to have to do it though. Maybe even believe that big, fancy necklace worn by a shrimp of a boy is real gold." He said, pointing to the Millennium Puzzle. Atem immediately grasped the puzzle and prepared to back away from Ren.

"I know better though. I'm just telling what ya might bring on yourself as soon as ya get off this boat." Ren ended.

Atem felt the puzzle again. He thought about taking it off, maybe it would be best if what Ren said was true. Then Atem felt the Immortal's ever-looming shadow ever so slightly grow.

"Again, thank you for your kindness. I am prepared for whatever comes to me once we get off this boat." Atem said with a quick nod to Ren.

Right then a wave pushed up against the boat more violently than past waves. The push caused Atem's backpack to turn over and some of the Millennium items to tumble out. Atem threw himself on the items so he could quickly get them back in his bag before another wave came along. After zipping his backpack up tightly he looked around to see if anyone else saw the golden items. His gaze landed on Ren whose own eyes were wide. He wasn't looking at the backpack though, he was looking at Atem's ID that had tumbled out onto the deck. Atem quickly grabbed it and stuffed it in his pocket. He looked back up at Ren but the man had already walked away. Atem was originally worried that he was going to one of the workers. He did not. He simply disappeared into the crowd around the TV.

* * *

Kuriboh appeared on the field with a light pop. His hologram simply stood on the field. Since it had no spirit the holograph didn't do anything Yugi didn't order it to. This always saddened Yugi a little since he was so used to Kuriboh dancing around, but now was not the time to worry about that. On Yugi's side of the field was Dark Magician Girl and Kuriboh. In front of them were Elemental Hero Tempest, a trap card, and a continuous spell that stopped Yugi from normal tribute summoning. The audience ooed and awed at Kuriboh's summoning. Neither the puffball nor Dark Magician Girl had enough points to stop Jaden's monster. Yugi could almost hear the crowd's questions. Why would he summon Kuriboh at a time like this? However, Jaden knew better than to question Yugi's move. The old king had been the original Kuriboh master.

"I now activate the spell card, Sneaking Tribute. This allows me to sacrifice a monster and special summon a new monster, as long as it's only 6 stars." Yugi said as he then pulled out his next card.

The crowd thought Yugi was about to sacrifice Kuriboh, but Yugi did not sacrifice the puffball as expected. Rebecca gasped louder than anyone else as she saw Yugi tribute Dark Magician Girl to summon Luster Dragon #2. She remembered back in the lounge when Yugi had asked for the card but she hadn't expected for him to actually use it. She thought it was only going to be a good luck charm. Despite the dragon's beautiful sheen, it still did not have very many ATK or DEF points over Dark Magician Girl. It had no chance against Tempest.

"I place three trap cards and end my turn," Yugi said. He looked up and smiled wide when he saw Rebecca's touched expression. So far, his deck hadn't been very different from his old deck, this had been the first new card. Yugi knew that if things went according to plan, it wouldn't be the only new card shown.

"Ok, then I draw!" Jaden announced as he pulled out his next card. Jaden looked over his deck and then to Yugi's field. While Yugi was still at full life points he was already down to 3800. He wanted to attack to at least get a little damage on Yugi, but he knew his opponent wouldn't have put three whole trap cards on the field without a reason. Jaden looked down to see if he had pulled any new monsters or spells. Nope, nothing he could use now. He hid his worry and decided to bite the bullet. He had to deal with those trap cards at some point.

"Ok, Tempest attack Luster Dragon #2," Jaden ordered. Tempest stretched its wings and threw himself at the shining dragon.

"I now activate my trap card!" Yugi cut in. Jaden flinched at those words he knew was coming. "I activate Dark Wedding. With this, I can sacrifice a dragon of at least 6 stars and a fiend of any level to summon an 8-star creature. You should recognize her Jaden, she was the reason you were defeated two times before!"

A white beam then shot down from seemingly the clouds above the two. Luster Dragon #2 and Kuriboh turned without a second thought and flew into the beam. The sound of bells echoed through the arena as the white of the beam turned blood red. As the last bell rang out Gandora-X the Dragon of Demolition came roaring forward. It was still the spirit of Gandora, just in a new body. That was the beauty of retrained cards. A completely new card with the intelligence and in this case, the rage of the old card.

"Hello again, little hero!" Gandora roared with a toothy grin. Jaden gulped, remembering that voice well.

Yugi watched Jaden closely. While Jaden looked nervous, Yugi didn't believe Gandora had surprised him all that much. Gandora had been Jaden's defeat too many times before for him not to have a plan. Yugi glanced at Jaden's trap. It had been on the field a while. In fact as soon as Jaden drew it he had laid it down. Yet, Jaden still wasn't activating it, he still had his eyes on Gandora. Maybe Yugi had underestimated his opponent.

"I activate Gandora's ability!" Yugi called.

Jaden knew her ability well. Gandora would destroy all other monsters on the field and inflict direct damage equal to the highest original ATK on the field. Enough to end this duel for him once again. Gandora's orbs started glowing red as she began her attack. Tempest flitted back in fear and looked to Jaden. Jaden nodded to him and activated his trap card. Sweat rolling down the back of his neck.

"I activate my own trap card, Spectral Nightmare! By sacrificing any number of monsters in my hand or field, I can banish any monster on the field for the same number of turns. But! I can bring back the monster before the end of the trap if I wish, at any point, including in the middle of your turn." Jaden yelled as he sacrificed Tempest and four other cards. Gandora let out a frustrated roar as the spirits of the sacrificed cards pulled her into a swirling portal. Yugi watched her go with a bit of confusion. That card seemed like such a big sacrifice to only get rid of Gandora temporally. She would have destroyed Jaden's life points so maybe that was all he could do, but Yugi couldn't help but feel there was more. Jaden must have seen Yugi's expression because he smiled.

"There's more to this card then meets the eye. As soon as Gandora comes back she will continue whatever ability she had active."

This made Yugi's eyes widened. That meant when Gandora came back she would nuke the field, including any monsters Yugi summoned. What was worse was that through this card his opponent chooses what monsters he wanted in his graveyard. Something Jaden was famous for turning to his advantage. While Yugi couldn't see the sacrificed cards, he at least knew what one card would most likely be. Elemental Hero Necroshade. Now Jaden could summon one extra tribute monster on any of his turns. Yugi would have to remember that, if he survived that long. Yugi, however, felt confident that this duel wasn't over yet. His stance remained firm despite having no monsters on his field. He already had two other strategies in place, one couldn't become the King of Games without at least a few tricks. Yugi activated his next trap card.

* * *

Atem made sure he was the last off the boat. He held back, hidden by a few boxes near the off-ramp and watched as the others walked down the creaky board to the Satellite.

At the bottom was two Sector Security guards checking everyone one last time before they let them loose on the destroyed city. Atem noticed that the guards confiscated any cards, duel disks, holographic projectors such as Yugi's game, or 'dangerous items', which Atem found to be anything the two guards happened to like. Atem grasped the puzzle's chain, he didn't think he'd get through inspection with it or any of the other Millennium Items.

The guards would get distracted every so often thanks to something interesting happening in the duel they had playing on their phone. Atem was waiting for his moment to sneak past them when Ren and his buddies came down the plank. Atem watched with interest as the guards checked the group. Then, his earlier fears reared up as Ren pulled aside one of the guards.

"Did a boy with a purple shirt and black jacket come out already?" Ren asked. The guard shook his head and Ren looked back to his two buddies. All three nodded to each other and walked to the side of the boat. They would have been hidden from view to anyone walking off the boat. Atem knew then that things just got a lot harder. If they had good intentions they would have warned the guard that a most likely run-away teen was still on the boat. Atem sighed as he tried to find a way to sneak around both the guards and Ren's group.

Just then a great roar came from the phone. The guards crowded around the phone as Yugi announced Gandora. Even Ren's group couldn't help but look at what Yugi was doing. Atem took this as his chance and slunk down the ramp, making sure to avoid the places that had squeaked earlier. Once he had gotten to the bottom he raced off into the city without looking back. He didn't stop until he found a dark alley to hide in. Atem sat down and quieted his breathing. A quick glance around told Atem that he was alone, well, as alone as he could be. Atem ignored the once again growing presence of the Condor and focused on the city around him.

What Atem had heard about the Satellite so far was true. It looked like the Zero Reverse had only happened yesterday. The buildings were falling apart, debris was everywhere, and there were even immense craters in the streets, opening to the abandoned subway below. In the distance, Atem could see the massive smokestacks of the many factories on the island. So many factories in such a small space led the sky to be permanently covered in a grey smog. While New Domino skies weren't crystal clear, all its big businesses were required to have one of those new air cleaning machines near their exhausts by law. Giving the sunlight a chance at touching the ground unscathed. Here, everything was an oppressive grey. Atem could see why no one came here unless they had to. The city felt like at any moment the buildings, along with the sky, was going to collapse and bury the inhabitants.

Once Atem had gotten his bearings he stood up and snuck out of the alley. He looked around every corner and checked behind his back at each strange sound. The longer Atem traveled, the more and more he felt the Condor's presences. Every sound, every little movement put Atem on edge, thus giving the Immortal more power. To add on to the problem building in his mind, Atem realized a bigger problem around him, he had no idea where he was going.

He had imagined the Satellite as a small island he could easily walk through in a day. It was actually a large city all unto itself, easily a few days of walking. If Atem could even get through it. Most of the streets and sidewalks were destroyed, with some roads even being completely buried halfway through. Atem stopped in front of such a cave in. He was running in circles and there were no maps to be found. Atem groaned and leaned against a tall piece of wreckage. Atem found himself getting tired just from racing around this part of the city. It almost felt like Wiraqocha Rasca was right beside him the entire time. Atem wasn't worried at the moment about falling to the Immortal but he was thinking about the long game. How many days would it take to search this city, all without sleep?

Just then Atem heard male voices. He quickly hid behind the tall piece of wreckage as he saw Ren's gang come around the corner.

"Are you sure that was Yugi's brother? His face is always blurred on TV." One of the men said.

"I'm sure, I saw his ID and everything."

"It could have been faked."

"Even if it was faked did you see the gold in his bag? At first, I thought it was artificial but then I saw the way he was treating it, and his reaction to Sector Security being on the island. He probably stole it, most likely from his brother if he is Atem Muto." Ren said.

"Ok… But what are we going to do when we do find him?"

"Our earlier plan, we are gonna be good Samaritans. We'll find that boy and figure out if he's really Atem. If he is we'll return him to his wealthy family for a reward, and keep a few pieces of gold. If he's not then we'll just keep the gold. If things go well we will be out of this town in less than a day." Ren said.

Atem held his breath as the group passed him. Letting himself become one with the shadows. He was so practiced at this it was almost second nature. When he thought they had moved on Atem ran out of his hiding spot and down the opposite street. He needed to find the old reactor, now.

Atem found himself jumping over small holes instead of going around them. Over one such hole, he heard noises from below. He looked down to see two children wearing patched clothing watching a nearly destroyed TV set. Of course, they were watching Yugi's duel. Yugi's soft, yet confident voice once again made its way to Atem's ears. Homesickness seemed to combine with the smog, it hung heavy around Atem's heart and soul. Why hadn't he at least said goodbye? He could almost see the hurt in Yugi's and his friends' eyes when they found his note. In fact, was that Téa's eyes?

Atem rubbed his face but he couldn't deny it. Down below it looked like Téa staring back up at him, fear and tears in her eyes. Truth be told her eyes was all Atem could see, her body was covered in shadow. Off in the distance, Atem almost heard the blare of a train horn.

One of the kids looked up and found Atem watching her closely. She squeaked and pulled away from the TV, pulling her friend along with her. This immediately brought Atem out of his delusion.

"Wait!" Atem called. He found a way to crawl down the hole and land in the subway tunnels below. He was surprised to see many people down here, much more than was on the streets above. A man came up to Atem with the girls hidden behind him.

"What do you want with my girls?" The large man growled.

"Nothing! I didn't mean to scare them. I'm actually lost. Do you happen to know the way to old Ener-D reactor?" Atem quickly asked.

"Ener what now?"

"Never mind." Atem sighed and nodded his head to the man. He was starting to walk away when one of the girls came forward.

"Do you mean the weird tower? If you're looking for that you have to head that way." The girl pointed down one of the tunnels. "The streets are closed off up top so you'll have to take the tunnels.

"Thank you." Atem smiled at the girl, who now did not look like Téa at all now. Talking to others, even briefly, was becoming something Atem needed more and more. Being alone with the Immortal was quickly becoming maddening.

* * *

The people in the skybox were cheering louder than anyone else in the stadium. People close to them were even getting annoyed, but those in the box didn't care.

One thing each had been wondering was what would be in Yugi's new deck, more than the average person, and it turned out to be for the same reason. Yugi had come to each of them before the duel and asked for their signature card. He even quickly asked Joey's right before he went into hiding earlier today. Here Yugi was, making sure all his friends got representation. What should have been a mismatched deck was working wonderfully. Yugi always made sure to look up at his specific friend each time he summoned one of their monsters. This always made his friend smile, even Kaiba couldn't hide a grin (very well, though he tried). Despite the happiness Yugi felt through the duel there was always one thing that took away Yugi's smile, Atem was still gone.

Rebecca was getting tired of seeing Yugi's smile lessen when he saw Atem's empty seat. She stood up when Yugi summoned Red-Eyes and glanced at the skybox. She nodded to Yugi and left the box with the intent of getting Atem from the lounge. Yugi saw her signal him and knew she was leaving for a good reason. His attention returned to the field where he had both Red-Eyes and Blue-Eyes along with a trap card. In front of the dragons was Jaden with two set trap cards and Elemental Hero Neos Knight with 3000 ATK points and Chrysalis Chicky with 400 DEF. Yugi was about to let Blue-Eyes attack when Jaden announced the thing Yugi had been fearing these last four turns.

"I summon Gandora back to the field!"

The portal from earlier reopened and Yugi watched in horror as Gandora came crawling out. She was brimming with red energy and ready to explode, just as Jaden said.

"I now activate my trap, Mega Cocoon Veil. This cancels monster destruction and brings effect damage done to me to 0. As a bonus, it lets me switch my Chrysalis Chicky for Neo-Spacian Air Hummingbird."

Yugi cringed as Gandora's blast shook the stadium. Both eyed dragons were destroyed in the blast and Gandora gained no ATK points to show for it. She could only gain the same number of ATK points as the damage done to Jaden. Now all Yugi had on his field was a very confused dragon, a trap, and one card in his hand. Those in the skybox held their breath as the stadium gasped.

"Good move… I end my turn." Yugi said breathlessly. He lost half his life points, the price of activating Gandora. Now he as at 3300 He could only be thankful he had been able to raise his life points to 6600 before this turn thanks to Bakura's card. Or he would truly be stuck this turn.

Jaden pulled his arm down in a triumphant gesture. There were so many was that combo could have gone wrong but the heart of the cards had been with him. Now he could see the end in sight. He might actually win this time. Before he started cheering though he had to be sure.

"Elemental Hero Neos Knight, attack Gandora!" Jaden ordered.

The shining knight flew across the field straight at Gandora. Gandora put her arms ups defensively but it was no use. With 0 ATK points, Yugi took all 3000 life points of damage, leaving him with only 300 life points left. Yugi had to cover his eyes from the wind whipped up by the attack. When the smoke cleared, he was standing alone. He let his eyes fall to the ground as the crowd cried in both excitement and fear.

" Neo… Neo-Spacian Air Hummingbird." Jaden shuddered, almost not believing it. "Attack Yugi directly." Everyone held their breath as the spaceman came flying at Yugi.

"I activate Mirror Force," Yugi said. Jaden just about fell back with a sigh. Of course, it was never that simple.

The attack came back on both monsters on Jaden's side. Jaden's other trap couldn't save them from this. Once again, the field was completely cleared with only the two duelists standing there. The crowd was dead silent as the wind died down. The two stared across the stadium at the other. The tension felt like it could be cut with a knife, until both Yugi and Jaden burst out laughing.

"It's never that easy! Why can't it ever be that easy!" Jaden hooted.

"Because we are not that kind of duelist. I swear this duel is going to go on forever at this rate. And you know what? I wouldn't mind that." Yugi chuckled. Most of the crowd glanced at each other. Had the two kings gone insane? Yet, those in the skybox and the pro duelists watching understood. Dueling could be deadly serious in this world, but it was also fun. The finest duelists did their best to remember that.

"Well, I guess I end my turn." Jaden said as he lazily put his arms behind his head.

Yugi nodded and drew his card. As he read his card a wide smile spread across his face. Jaden immediately put down his arms when he saw the smile.

"I activate another new spell of mine. I admit I'm about to use this to summon a monster that was only ever used by… my opponents in the past." Yugi didn't feel saying enemies on live TV would be the best word choice. "Now though, I feel like it can be an amazing representation of my life so far. I activate Dragon's Mirror. This allows me to Fusion Summon 1 Dragon-Type Fusion Monster, by banishing Fusion Materials from my field or Graveyard. This last turn I just lost three of some of the greatest dragons in duel monsters. Each with their own strengths and weakness." Yugi took this moment to glance up to both Joey and Seto.

"Along with those three I banish Luster Dragon #2 and Twin-Headed Behemoth to summon Five-Headed Dragon!" Everyone lost their breath as the spirits of each of the dragons went into a mirror that appeared on the field. Soon a roar that dwarfed even Gandora's rocked the stadium. Slowly, limb by limb, the great dragon pulled itself out of the mirror.

While this monster had been a massive enemy to Yugi in the past, the one in front of him was different. This one had the hearts and souls of each of his friends, either directly through their dragons or by their friendship through Yugi. Each of its heads was one of the sacrificed dragon's, all coming together in a royal blue and gold body. This monster had 5000 ATK, 5000 DEF, and immunities to DARK, EARTH, WATER, FIRE, and WIND monster attacks. It was just as strong as their friendships and, hopefully, would be the thing to keep Yugi standing.

Yugi heard everyone cheer around him, Jaden couldn't help but smile at the massive dragon. It was hard to summon and he had to give credit to Yugi for finding a way to summon it. Still, even then Jaden was trying to find a way to bring it down.

Yugi let himself relax a moment as he once again looked to the skybox. It was then Rebecca came running into the box holding a small note. She started frantically waving the note in her friends' faces. Even all the way at the bottom of the stadium Yugi could see the tears in her eyes. Suddenly, Yugi understood everything. The Earthbound Immortal's influence on Atem, the Crimson Dragon's plan, even Atem's whereabouts. Yugi's smile instantly fell off his face. He had another epiphany and he needed to act on it now. Jaden immediately knew something was up when Yugi lost his smile. He covered his microphone and called to Yugi.

"It everything alright?"

Yugi wanted to run out of the stadium there and then. He didn't know how much time he had left. Then the roars of the crowd fought their way into Yugi's thoughts. He looked around at the thousands of people watching. The stadium seemed to spin around him.

He couldn't leave.


	36. The Door of Darkness Had Been Opened

'You've made it through worse. Just think of seeing Mana, Mahad, and priest Seto again. It is for the best.' Atem thought to himself as he trudged through freezing waist-high water. The dank smell that dripped off the walls made his nose wrinkle, but he had to keep moving. Thankfully, he had found a flashlight in his backpack earlier, without it he would never have been able to see through the pitch dark of the deeper tunnels. He had no idea how far underground he had been the last hour, but it felt like he was finally coming back to the surface. This was something Atem focused on as he slogged forward.

Atem's light fell on a metal box halfway in the water. It was attached to the wall and had a lightning bolt grooved into its rusted metal. This was one of many boxes spread across the tunnels.

'Good thing they're not on.' Atem thought as he moved the light beam to the water below him. The water reflected back in a rainbow shimmer, splotches of black oil floating through the already dark water.

 _This is dangerous, you should turn back._

It was not quite a voice that spoke to Atem's mind, it never was an audible voice when two linked spirits spoke with one another. What made Atem shiver more than the random voice (he was used to those) was the fact the voice felt very much like his.

'Isn't this what you want though? For me to fall unconscious? Or are you scared of a little water?' Atem quickly thought back, using the tease to hide his uneasiness.

He then felt like the presences behind him pulled away, annoyed. Atem felt another thought flash through its mind. Frustration and anger. If this human's body was destroyed or damaged it could not fix it as it could with past hosts. It had already "fixed" Atem's body once, it did not have the power to do it again. Atem shrugged at the explanation he knew it had not meant to give and continued on through the tunnel. Occasionally, checking the boxes to make sure they weren't on.

Ever since Atem left the stadium Wiraqocha Rasca had been steadily growing stronger. The power that it had been holding back to hide its presences now bloomed and took over as much of the body as it could. The situation only grew direr when the feeling of the Condor turned into actually hearing the thing's thoughts. Atem was less worried than before however. Wiraqocha Rasca was at a wall. It could manifest itself as an illusion besides Atem and speak to his mind, but that was it. As long as Atem was in charge it was stuck.

'I've had my mind warped and ripped apart by thousands of spirits, shadow games, even by the Great Leviathan. You are nothing compared to them' Atem mentally growled. Atem's assurance made the barrier between it and its goal stronger. This made the beast pull farther away.

Atem soon learned about his new hitchhiker thanks to the Immortal itself. The thing told him everything, unintentionally. The Condor was unfamiliar with connections where both souls were equal. Atem was well practiced thanks to his years with Yugi. While it couldn't hide a thing from him, he made sure the Condor was completely in the dark regarding himself. It had spent so much time waiting to even get a hint of what would make the pharaoh break. However, it knew exactly what nerve to push now and once it had its chance...

'You shouldn't think your evil plans out loud. It is both annoying and counterproductive.' Atem cut in. He let a small smile slip as he felt the thing sulk. He knew very well he was playing with fire by taunting the beast, but he was confident he could take whatever this thing threw at him. If he wasn't confident how else could he keep moving forward?

Atem looked back to his path when the tunnel finally opened into a tall dome-shaped room. This might have been a cross connection for the subways system back in the day. Atem looked up to see a ray of light trickle down from a hole almost half a mile above him. He squinted his eyes and noticed thick green vines grow their way down from the hole. They stopped about twenty feet above him. Where they ended was the structure of crisscrossing metal beams in a grid-like pattern. Most of the metal supports were broken or had fallen into the water by Atem. Some of the bigger beams, however, were still balancing horizontally on one sturdy beam going vertically from one side of the room to the other.

Atem sighed with relief when he saw a ladder sticking out of the water that led to a metal platform above. He had to swim to it, but after checking to make sure it held his weight he finally climbed out of the water. To his left was a wide passage and across the many beams was another tunnel. Atem pulled out a compass that the Mutos packed and checked his direction.

After the little girl, Atem was able to meet a few more people that knew of the reactor, though none of them called it that. One woman was nice enough to even tell Atem the direction it was on the island instead of just a general tunnel to go through. Atem faced the tunnel closest to him and found that tunnel went the opposite direction of where he wanted.

"Of course." Atem looked across the beams to the other side of the room. Over there was another platform with a tunnel going the right direction.

Atem sighed but he had no choice. With no other interruption from his hitchhiker, Atem took a running start and leaped across the water. He grabbed a metal beam and heard it creak under his weight. While the metal girder was about as big as him, he didn't want to take any chances. He quickly scrambled up and threw his weight over its middle, the part resting on the center beam. Atem waited for the horizontal beam to stop swaying before sighing in relief. He slowly moved his foot to the strong center beam and stood up. It held his weight. Atem raised an eyebrow and looked around. His confusion disappeared when he saw the vines that had grown and attached to the sides of the beams. He waited a few more moments and when nothing happened, he prepared to crawl over to the next horizontal bar. He was stopped when he heard three male voices.

"We haven't seen the kid in forever. Should we really have trusted that one armed guy?"

"He had the exact description of the kid and direction. It's all we have to go on."

Atem recognized the voice of Ren and quickly crouched down on the joist, unsure of where it was coming from.

"By the way… did that guy seem familiar to you?"

"Ya, kind of. I'd almost say he was that security Ojama Goodwin, but this guy had blonde hair." Ren's two friends said.

Atem then saw Ren and his buddies come through the tunnel he just left. Atem's eyes widened. How in Slifer's name did they find him all the way down here? He then felt it, a strange surge of pride from the Condor. Atem gritted his teeth and tried to look around for a place to hide.

"No place to go but up- Hey! There you are." Came Ren's voice. Atem's back stiffened. Quickly Ren and his buddy came crawling up the ladder. Just enough time for Atem to make it half-way through the obstacle course of beams and vines. While he was fast, it would not be fast enough.

"Hey kid, stop! Atem! We just want to help!" Ren yelled. His friend behind him echoed his call.

Atem didn't stop. He wasn't going to look back until he felt the whole structure shake. He turned to see Ren had vaulted onto the first beam. Atem felt and heard the rusted metal beast roar. He then saw Ren's other friend about to jump.

"Stop! This thing can't hold much more!" Atem yelled. The made the man hesitate.

"Ya stay over there. I'll deal with this." Ren called back as he pulled himself up. Atem held his breath as the structure settled.

"I'm not coming back with you," Atem said. His voice even, but forceful.

"Yes, ya are. It's too dangerous down here for a kid! Carefully make your way back to me and we can get ya home."

Atem shook his head. He then took off his backpack and held it out over the water. Ren and his buddy's eyes were glued to it.

"I'm sure, and if I dropped this bag would you really keep coming after me? Or would you just be happy with the FAKE gold." Atem yelled. The man on the other platform looked worried for a moment but Ren's eyes were determined.

"Don't try lying kid, I know what's really in that bag."

Atem just did not get it. Ren honestly didn't seem like a bad guy, anxious but not bad. On the boat, it seemed like he honestly wanted to help Atem. Yet here he was, chasing after some wild hope, risking life and limb. Did the Satellite really make people that desperate, or…? In almost a blink of an eye, Atem saw a purple outline of a spider appear then disappear on Ren's arm.

 _Not Uru's best shadow drone but it will have to do._

'Really, what is this about a shadow drone?' The Condor's thought was quickly stifled when it realized how much Atem heard.

'Is he a Dark Signer?' Atem sadly asked. Another thought came that the Condor tried and failed to suppress.

 _No, but another Dark Signer is controlling him._

'You won't get away with this.' Atem nearly growled out loud. He then did say out loud. "Turn back Ren! You're a good man and there is nothing for you here. Think about what your wife and son would say if they saw you doing this!"

Ren's eyes widen for a second before they shrunk back into slits.

"They would be thanking me for trying to keep them out of poverty. Ya already have everything Atem, just hand over the bag and we can be done."

Atem pulled the bag closer to him. Ren responded by jumping from one joist to another. Atem stumbled as the structure shook. He had to think of a way to stop this soon. He doubted he could outrun these men with his need to not tire himself out. What Ren had said about settling differences the old fashion way rang through Atem's head. There was no way he was going to win in a physical fight with grown men.

The old fashion way.

Atem gripped the Millennium Puzzle. His eyes glanced around at the environment. Yes, he could make a game out of this easy. Atem was about to open his mouth when he felt something that shut it tight. The Condor was happy, even excited.

'Why do you want a shadow game so bad?'

Another thought, this one harder to make out. The Condor was slowly getting better at hiding. Yet, Atem could still see it, a memory of him back during his first seven months. Shadows flowed through his soul freely, all because of his dark acts. A perfect environment for a being like Wiraqocha Rasca to take over.

'One shadow game won't turn my soul into what it was like back then. That was thousands of years of nothing but shadows.' Atem shot back at the thought.

 _You spent so much time the last few months trying to prove you are not what you used to be. It would be a blow to your soul to suddenly go back on all of that._

Atem wanted to grimace but he couldn't show weakness to these men or to Wiraqocha Rasca.

"Ren! We are going to keep running in circles at this rate. Let us end this quickly with a simple game!" Atem called. Wiraqocha Rasca seemed delighted until it realized that Atem was not going to use shadow magic.

'Simply outsmarting an opponent is not regression.' Atem smiled.

"A game? Winner gets the bag?" Ren asked.

"Yes, that way we can finish this before someone gets hurt," Atem said. Ren shakily stood up on his beam and faced Atem, his arms crossed.

"How do I know you won't just run when I'm distracted with this 'game'?"

"That would be cheating. I am many things, but I am not a cheater."

Even Ren's friend on the platform felt the power behind Atem's statement. This person in front of them felt like royalty, not some snot-nosed teen. He couldn't help but take a step away from the aura he felt radiating from the kid.

"Are you sure about this Ren?" His friend called out. Ren turned to his friend briefly then looked back to the bag, then the boy. Atem stood straight, never taking his gaze away from Ren.

"You expect me to just trust you?" Ren asked.

"It's the same trust I give to you. You could just physically fight the bag away in the middle of our game, but that would also be cheating. I will not run and you will not attack me." Atem said more to the thing controlling Ren then the man himself. The spider outline returned for a brief moment before disappearing again.

"You're on."

* * *

Yugi was frozen in place. All color and emotion had drained out of his face.

You're going to lose Atem.

His mind was running a million thoughts a second but nothing made it past its initial stage.

You are going to lose Atem.

Jaden started worriedly tapping his duel disk as the crowd began to murmur. Up in the skybox, Seto stood straight up and stormed out, followed by Mokuba.

You. Are. Losing. Him. Again!

"Master! What's going on?" Yugi glanced to his side where Dark Magician Girl appeared. "I know I'm supposed to be in the graveyard but I felt as your emotions took a nosedive. I know a simple duel couldn't have done that to you. What happened?!" She nearly squeaked. The Gandora head of the Five-Headed Dragon also looked back at Yugi with worry in its eyes.

'A-Atem is…' Yugi realized he didn't have long before he forgot this. He had no paper on him but he did have a pen.

'Sorry Silent Magician.' Yugi thought as he started writing on the back of the card.

"This is… an interesting turn of events, folks." The announcer was trying to hide his confusion but even he couldn't figure out what the old King was doing.

Yugi looked over at his messy handwriting. It had everything Yugi had just found out thanks to his epiphany. He then looked back up to see if anyone was stopping the tournament. Seto was still gone but the rest of his friends and family were in the skybox.

"Finish dis Yuge! We have to go!" Joey's voice carried through all the murmurs of the crowd and hit Yugi.

Maybe he should just run out, he could care less of how the public saw himself. He could explain later how it was a family emergency. This was Atem! Then again, doing that would also put more eyes on the pharaoh and when he completed his mission… how would they explain his disappearance?

"Yugi… If something's wrong…" Jaden's words cut into Yugi's thoughts. Jaden had walked closer so he didn't have to yell, but not close enough to disqualify him. This was still not a private conversation, despite the microphones being covered.

Yugi looked to the very troubled face of his opponent. Through these five years, Jaden had become a real friend to Yugi and his family. He still vividly remembered all his battles with Yuki, the two official, and the one non. Each leading to this moment.

No, Yugi had to finish this here and now. Not for himself, not even for Atem, but for Jaden.

This was Jaden's first duel as the King of Games. Sure, they could reschedule the battle, but it would never be the same in the public's eye. There would forever be complaints of cheating and underhanded deals. Jaden's accent to the throne had to be perfect. There were still so many people that wouldn't accept him as king even though he had won it fairly, Yugi leaving mid-battle would add to the problem. Jaden wouldn't care, but he would. Yugi could never do that to a friend.

It hurt Yugi more than anything, but he sucked in all the breath he had and pushed away the thought of Atem. He had to focus on the living, Atem was dead, Jaden still had a future.

"Get back to your place, Jaden," Yugi said through gritted teeth. Jaden blinked, not quite understanding.

"Attack him directly! Five-Headed Dragon!" Yugi yelled. This command was Yugi's loudest. It cut through the stadium's whispers with its raw emotion.

Jaden jumped at the order. He quickly recomposed himself and ran back to his spot, but he knew something was still up. He looked to Yugi and noticed tears starting to rim his eyes. This made Jaden's heart stop more than any dragon's attack.

"He's falling apart." Yubel appeared at Jaden's side, her two-colored eyes looking into Yugi's soul. Jaden quickly activated his only trap card but he wasn't worried about the duel.

"I know. This isn't right."

* * *

Atem nodded. He waited as Ren made his way over to the middle. He even helped the man stand on the sturdy center beam. Once Ren was steady Atem explained,

"See the joists ahead? They are all barely balancing on the beam you're standing on, like seesaws." Atem then threw his backpack to the next beam. Both Ren and his friend gasped as the bag went flying. Atem lazily slouching back as the bag landed safely on the next beam, a little right to the middle. The beam started to slowly tilt towards the side with the bag.

"This is a game of balancing, speed, and trust. I will jump across to one side of the beam, and you will have to judge where you need to jump to balance me out. If you or I fall into the water before we both get to the other side, you lose. I run away with my bag and you'll never find me in the tunnels again. If we both make it to the other side, you get the bag and I'll be on my way."

Ren was on edge through the entire explanation thanks to the tilting beam. He barely looked at Atem and instead focused on the bag. Atem had hoped for this.

"This can't work. There is no way I can equal your weight even with your backpack!" Ren quickly pointed out. Atem shrugged.

"You think I'd put out an unwinnable game?"

"Stop this now! The kid can't survive a fall like this!" His friend yelled, pointing to the drop below them.

"This is also a game of trust. You don't have to equal me exactly, just give me enough time to throw my bag and self to the next beam." Atem then jumped, landing lightly a little way away from the bag, closer to the edge. Ren's friend gasped. The beam started tilting even farther. Atem did not appear bothered, he simply rested his hands behind his back.

"Finally, this is a game of speed. You don't have a lot of time Ren." Atem said matter-of-factly.

Ren growled in frustration and took a wild leap. He landed farther out on the other side of the beam. It creaked in protest and started sliding the other way. Ren quickly scrambled up, preparing for the beam to start sliding his way. The girder groaned but then balanced out. Ren had the same confused expression Atem had when he first landed on the metal joists. Atem then gestured behind him, there and also behind Ren were vines attached to the beams. When the beam started tipping too much to one side or the other the vines would pull on the beam.

"They may appear weak but these have survived a Zero Reverse ravaged environment. They won't hold forever though, they absolutely will break if too much weight is put on them. Like right now." Atem then tossed his backpack and quickly followed.

Ren threw himself at the sturdy beam in the middle as the vines did indeed snap. The joist behind them slide and fell with a great splash into the murky water below them. Ren's friend looked absolutely horrified but Ren kept his eyes on Atem. Atem remained standing straight as his beam once again began to tilt down. Ren growled and looked to see how many vines were attached to the next girder. A lot on his side, not many on the boy's. Ren thought and then leaped closer to the center. He counterbalanced Atem's sliding, but by putting more weight on the center the fewer number of vines on Atem's side could still hold them up.

Atem nodded and then threw his bag to the next beam before Ren could fully get up. This next beam was the second to last beam.

"Atem! Slow down a bit will ya?" Ren gasped.

"Can't, I rather not get wet."

The bag landed near center and Atem jumped nearly to the end of his beam. The bar titled near vertical. Atem was about to fall when Ren heaved himself to the opposite side, barely hanging on to the beam by his fingers. The joist creaked its protest and slid back towards the man. Ren with a wild grunt swung his whole body's weight, making the beam slide diagonally on the middle bar it balanced on. Atem felt the whole structure shudder as the beam the two were on rested on the middle beam at an angle. It now had more stability thanks to more of its middle balancing on the sturdier structure.

"Thought you were going to get me with that one, huh?" Ren grinned as he shuffled his way over to the middle area and pulled himself up. Atem's face remained confident but he did show some surprise.

"As I said this is a winnable game. I'd never make something impossible, just tricky." Atem said. He then looked to the last girder before the platform. This one was resting on two more smaller planks coming out from the platform. Making it the sturdiest of all the beams.

"Thinking of backing out now? I've already proved I can calculate where I need to be, there's no way I'm going to fail on this easy beam. Just give me the bag already. Or are ya trying to think of a way to cheat your way out of this?" Ren grinned. The smile was not like the one Ren had given Atem back on the boat. That one had been good-humored but sad, this smile was, cold. Atem hid his apprehension and remained outwardly confident.

"Trust, Ren," Atem said. He pulled the bag closer to him and watched as Ren's eyes became glued to the bag. There was a reason why he never let the bag remain on a girder long. This was a game of trust, and Atem never trusted his opponent.

In one movement Atem jumped and threw his bag at the same time. Ren watched the bag as it arched through the air. It landed, dangling by its strap at the very end of the beam. Atem landed near the middle and waited. The backpack alone was not enough to sway the joist. What was enough was the weight of the heavy bag and a full-grown man. That is exactly what happened as Ren leaped to the end of the beam, next to the bag.

"I finally got it!" He yelled as he pulled himself up and hefted the bag into the air. He looked back just in time to see Atem gently step off the beam. The entire structure roared as the weight became too much on Ren's side. Before Ren could right himself the planks fell away and the beam toppled over. Ren fell, angrily screaming into the water below. This was one moment Atem did use a bit of shadow magic (not enough for Jaden to be affected by, hopefully). The bag floated into the air before it landed in the water and flew back to Atem's side. Atem felt the combined fatigue it took to levitate the backpack and leap across all those beams. He bent forward and rested his hands on his knees.

He watched the water below as Ren came up. The man was angry but seemingly ok. He thankfully jumped away from the beam when he realized it was falling. He was lucky, maybe too lucky. Atem shook his head in disbelief as Ren stormed across the water and started climbing the ladder on the other side.

"Enough of these games! Get that kid!" Ren yelled. His friend was frozen in place but Ren seemed ready to try and leap across the girders again.

Atem quickly looked around for something, anything. Then he saw it, a power box much like the ones he had seen earlier. He rushed over and was able to pull it open thanks to its age and rust. Inside was many switches, most broken but a few still looked like they connected to something. Atem closed his eyes, knowing well this would have been the moment he opened the door of darkness. He took a deep breath and threw as many switches as he could. Only one sparked, it led down to a broken light fixture near the other side of the room. That was all the oil on the water needed.

The room nearly burst into flames and the fire desperately climbed any surface it could find. Atem could only hope that Ren would break out of his control long enough to leave. He and his friend had a tunnel right by them to get away.

 _That tunnel might lead to a dead end._

Atem felt his heart stop at that thought. He might have just doomed these men to… No, he couldn't stay here any longer. The world was still in danger. Atem prayed to whatever gods still liked him and ran into his tunnel. Maybe the smoke would attract some help from the hole above if the men really were trapped. Atem fixated on the thought instead of the Condor's growing power.

 _You cannot play these games without someone getting hurt. It is simply your nature Atem. Just think back to the construction site, the shadow games, the train-_

Atem broke into a run like he could outpace the voice.

* * *

This was not how Jaden thought the duel was going to go down. He had expected Yugi to be tough, he had expected to refight Gandora, he had even expected Yugi to pull out some other nearly unbeatable monster, what he had not expected was Yugi to be the one to break down.

Jaden had managed to survive his first two round with Five-Headed Dragon thanks to his trap cards but he was still backed into a corner. No cards, not monsters in the field or his hand, and that behemoth was still out. He would usually be thrilled mixed with utterly terrified but seeing Yugi's destress stopped any fun from reentering the duel. The old king was almost pacing these last few turns. His calm and regal features gone and replaced with worry and pain. Jaden had tried to talk to him but every time Yugi or the crowd cut him off.

'Have you figured out what's going on?' Jaden mentally asked Yubel. She reappeared and shook her head.

"Even Dark Magician Girl doesn't know," Yubel answered. "I'm going to keep looking though." With that, she disappeared again. Jaden sighed and pulled out his next card.

His deck was getting low and at this rate, he would deck out. He looked to the still fidgeting king, then to his new card. It was the spell card, Fifth Hope. Jaden smiled a little and activated it. With it, he could select 5 Elemental Hero cards from his graveyard, shuffle them into his deck, and draw 3 cards. The entire time he did this Yugi did not get any calmer, in fact, it seemed to agitate him more.

Jaden exhaled and looked at his new cards. His eyes widened, two monsters and one spell. He could do it, with all these cards he could win. Yugi only had Five-Headed Dragon, no monsters, and by how he was playing the last two turns, no spells. Jaden still had Necroshade in the graveyard and now was the time to use his ability. The thought of actually winning brought some light back to Jaden's face. He was about to begin his combo when Yubel reappeared.

"Atem's dying! Or more he's purposefully going back to the afterlife!" Yubel screeched.

Jaden, in horror, looked up to Yugi. Yugi had heard what Yubel said and sadly nodded, giving up on being secretive. Dark Magician Girl covered her mouth to hide a gasp as the Five-Headed Dragon began to roar, unsure of its own feelings on the matter.

Jaden froze, he glanced around at the stadium. It was then Jaden noticed most of Yugi's friends were gone from the skybox. The audience members were also getting uneasy. Most had noticed by now Yugi's change in demeanor and how he started playing much more recklessly. Jaden was just glad Duel Spirits could never be caught on camera, even by the minute percentage of seers, or else Yubel's proclamation would have been broadcasted to the world. Jaden then felt something worse, an empty, draining feeling. It was small, almost unperceivable if he wasn't expecting it. Yubel felt it too.

"Atem just used shadow magic." She said. It looked like Yugi was about to collapse when he heard that. Jaden knew what he had to do. He changed his strategy.

"I activate Neroshade's ability, with it I summon Elemental Hero Neos to the field," Jaden said as he quickly slapped the card on his duel disk. Neo appeared once again from the grave, making most of the dragon heads growl. "I also activate my spell Battle x 2. With it, I can double Neos's ATK during damage calculations."

Yugi stopped fidgeting, he watched in astonishment as Neo came flying at the dragon hundreds of time his size. With the card both monsters' attacks were equal and Neos was a LIGHT monster. In stunned amazement, Yugi saw each of the five dragon heads open their mouths and summon their signature attacks. They all fired at once and the beam combined into one rainbow blast streaming at Neos. The spell Jaden played made Neos's white light glow even brighter, enveloping him and making him seem like a speeding comet. He collided with the blast and broke through it. He never stopped, even at the dragon's chest. Neos shot through the dragon then disappeared into a shower of sparks. The dragon fell soon after, disappearing into smoke that covered the stadium.

Yugi remained silent and still, the wind from the attack blowing his jacket and hair back. When the smoke cleared Jaden had one of the biggest smiles on his face.

"My goal in this battle was to prove that you were right in letting me become the King of Games. I defeated the dragon that had stopped me before, destroyed an almost unkillable monster, and gave some of my best friends the battle of their lives. I think I did pretty good all things considered." Jaden grinned. Yugi couldn't help but smile back.

"You have rightfully earned your title, Jaden. I couldn't have passed it on to a better man." Yugi found himself saying. He meant every word of it.

"Then let's finish this Yugi." Jaden ended his turn.

Yugi drew his next card. Jaden was at only 100 life points, he just needed a normal monster. The Silent Magician LV1 card with the writing on it stood out to Yugi. He felt his mouth dry up. He looked to Jaden's two remaining cards and tried to figure out how they would save him. Jaden wasn't even looking at his cards. He was resting his card hand on his hip and still smiling at Yugi. Yugi shook his head, there were still too many thoughts racing through him.

"I summon Silent Magician LV4 and have her attack you directly Jaden!" Yugi expected Jaden to activate a spell or monster ability. He did nothing, he simply closed his eyes and took that attack.

The crowd shouted and roared, the duel spirits even came out of their hiding places to add their own thoughts to the ending of the duel, but no one could change the outcome.

Jaden lost

* * *

Soon enough the tunnel returned to pitch darkness and the smoky smell disappeared. Atem realized he was wasting too much energy and stopped, he couldn't get tired yet. He leaned against a wall and let his heart slow. He looked where he had just come from, frowning as he panted. He then shook his head and glanced down at the Millennium Puzzle. After staring at it a few moments he reached up and laid his hand on its flat edge. He felt along the flawless grooves until he got to the rounded corners. They originally were as straight and perfect as the other designs, but years of using them to cut into things to save himself had rounded them. Of course, they would not have been this smooth without Yugi. He had hugged the puzzle close to himself almost every night when he was a teen, making the corners even duller. That thought helped Atem tune out the buzz of worries and fatigue.

Atem once again stood up, ready to continue his search. Then, he heard footsteps behind him. He fumbled for his flashlight and pulled it out in time to see Ren's other friend turn the corner.

Atem froze, three men had entered the big room before, two had climbed the ladder and stood on the platform. Atem then felt an almost condescending memory flash in the Condor's mind. The entire time Atem had been focused on the two, the other man had been carefully picking his way up to the other platform without going across the beams. When Atem had gotten across he had hidden just out of view in the tunnel. Atem must have run past him when he started the fire, but how had he not noticed him sooner?! Then Atem remembered the hallucination the Condor gave him back before he came underground. The thing could still control his perceptions. What made Atem's heart beat faster was the fact this Condor was able to hide that fact from him, despite their connection.

"Kid, what happened back there?!" The man started storming over to Atem. Atem didn't know if he had bad intentions but he wasn't going to take another chance. He turned and was about to run again when the man grabbed him by the hood. Atem's muscle memory went into action as he turned to the man at an angle and used the man's own weight to throw him forward. The self-defense move was not made for the cramped tunnel however. The man in surprise did not let go of Atem's hood, pulling the boy headfirst into the stone wall. This was enough for the Condor to finally pull Atem into unconsciousness.

* * *

Yugi was the one to find himself on his hands and knees at the end of the duel. He was still fighting tears, but it was for a much different reason then earlier. Jaden tossed his cards and duel disk behind him and ran to Yugi's side.

"Great battle, but I think we both know it could have gone better."

Yugi looked up in amazement at the still chipper Jaden. Jaden helped him to his feet and put his hand on Yugi's shoulder. Yugi suddenly felt very cold, he looked at his shoulder to see an almost black light come out of Jaden's hand. When Jaden pulled away, he stumbled. He quickly collected himself and rubbed the back of his head.

"That's all the shadow power I can give you without collapsing. I think you're gonna need it." Jaden said. Yugi blinked, unable to process. "Don't worry, the Supreme King knows. We've been…ah… talking as of late. While we're never going to have the relationship you and Atem have, I think we are slowly working our way to annoyed neighbors."

Yugi let out a confused chuckle then faced Jaden. "Thank you."

"Don't mention it. I only ask that you give me a true duel when you get back, k? I want a real duel with the king. No crowds and no family emergencies. I want to know if I really could beat you." Jaden patted Yugi on the shoulder one more time and turned away. Across the stadium, all of Jaden's friends came running out. Jesse was the first to bearhug Jaden and was then followed by everyone else, including Jaden's army of duel spirits. Yugi smiled. He knew Jaden and the dueling world was in good hands.

Yugi turned and ran from the stadium. He had to get to Atem before it was too late.


	37. Would Have and Might Of

Yugi didn't stop running until he found Rebecca and the rest of his family in one of the VIP rooms. She was listening to someone on her phone and didn't notice Yugi come in. He was quickly noticed by AJ however as the kid just about tackled him.

"Dad, what's happening? Where's Uncle?" AJ asked. Yugi hugged his son with all his might and turned to Rebecca. She had noticed him at that point and hung up.

"Yugi! I'm so sorry but Atem... he's-" Rebecca's voice cracked. Unable to finish her sentence she held out a small note. Yugi took it and immediately read,

I am going back to the afterlife. Do not worry about the Earthbound Immortals or me anymore. If I leave now it will all be fixed. Once I go back you guys will not be able to speak of the afterlife, and shadow magic will mostly leave again. I am sorry I cannot give a proper goodbye. Please know my sudden departure had nothing to do with any of you. Just know with all your souls that we will see each other again. But please, do your best to make sure that reunion is far off, for my sake.

-Atem

Yugi gripped the paper as he read. He looked back up to Rebecca who simply shook her head.

"I found that on your bag. Atem's backpack was gone, he did leave his deck and cellphone but that was it." She said as she gestured to a table with the items on it. "Marik and Bakura took their gang and are currently sweeping the city. Seto is collecting his own resources with Mokuba and is about to join the search."

"He's not in the city anymore. He'd be in the Satellite by now." Yugi said as he pulled out the Silent Magician card. Both Rebecca and AJ gasped when they saw the writing on it. They both knew what that meant, another epiphany. AJ tried to look closer at the card but his mother grabbed and kept it out of his reach. AJ pulled away with a deep frown and stomped his foot. Yugi sighed, then bent down to look him in the eyes.

"AJ is any of the others still in the building?"

"Yes, Joey, Téa, and the Kaibas. Do you want me to get them?"

"That would be amazing. Please do it as fast as you can." Yugi said while putting a hand on AJ's shoulder. AJ nodded and headed for the door. Before he left the room, he turned once again to his father.

"Is Uncle going to be alright? I know he's leaving but…"

Yugi felt his throat tighten up.

"Of course, you've seen him in action before. He can often take care of himself better than we can. We just want to make sure we get our own goodbyes." Yugi said as he put on a smile. AJ nodded and raced out, fully trusting his father.

* * *

When Joey, Téa, and Seto were brought, Yugi explained everything he could remember from the epiphany. Once the group knew what was going on, they immediately went into action. While the group had an unshakeable faith in Atem and knew he would finish his mission. They couldn't let him leave like this.

"What I'm more interested in is where you're getting this information from, Yugi. Everyone else has seemed to accept these 'epiphanies' but I don't trust them. What if it's from the Earthbound Immortals or your own mind?" Seto said. At the same time, he was talking with the group, he was also working with Mokuba in the stadium and Bakura and Marik down by the docks. He had been keeping track of them all with video calls on his laptop,

Yugi had no good answers to his suspicion. He had wondered these too, but Atem had assured him that whatever made these thoughts appear was a real power.

"Atem said it was very similar to some group called the 'Higher Ups.' I don't know how to explain it but that sound right to me." Yugi said. At the name, Seto's back instantly stiffened. He found himself gripping the chip that kept his coat at the same temperature, just to make sure it was still there. He held there for a moment before going back to coordinating with his brother as nothing happened. No one noticed him.

"I remember Atem talkin' about dese Higher Ups. He seemed to respect dem like deities, but not the same way he respected the Egyptian gods or the Crimson Dragon." Joey said. The others nodded. This made Yugi sit back in his chair.

"As I said, this is hard to explain but, when I had my first one of these realizations it was with Atem in our yard. At that moment it felt… right, like I was supposed to remember those things. After that however, things like using shadow magic or getting more random memories, felt like an accident. It was still coming from the same place but it almost felt like I was overhearing these memories and skills instead of being given them..." Yugi looked up at the group's confused face. "…and that made no sense. Sorry guys, it's the best I got."

Seto gave an unconvinced sigh while the other remained just as lost. Rebecca eventually shook her head and shrugged.

"No time to worry about that now. Seto, have you got a helicopter or jet to the Satellite yet?" She nearly barked.

Seto gave her a sideways glare and returned to working with his brother. Mokuba had heard everything in the conversation thanks to the video call. He was down in the lower parts of the stadium trying to avoid the public as he worked.

"We're trying here guys. On a normal day, it's almost impossible to get permission to land in the Satellite! The boats are done for the night and all these people are waiting for the old King of Games. It's a juggling act just to keep suspicions down. We don't want Security or fans marching into whatever Atem's doing." Mokuba explained. It was Téa that then stood up.

"Sector Security's not going to let us on the island in time, are they?" She asked. After a few silent moments, Seto nodded. "Can we sneak on?" Her second question made Seto chuckle.

"Security's on high alert today. Now that the main tournament is done, they'll definitely notice a stray helicopter."

"What if they had another thing to distract them? Like a big star suddenly putting on a show for the new King of Games?" Téa continued. This made both Kaiba brothers stop.

"As in right now?! That would be a nightmare for the workers here." Mokuba gasped.

"It would also be hell for Security. Having to suddenly keep a big star from her ravenous fans. That would certainly keep their attention." Seto said. Téa's determined look once again covered her face. She had practically coined the facial expression when she was a teen and now there was no backing out.

"But Téa," Yugi said, worry quavering his voice. "If you're here, then you won't be able to see Atem before he-" He was cut off by Téa's raised hand.

"I know this isn't the end, and I absolutely know you'll give him a goodbye that is enough for all of us. So please, don't waste any more time." She said. Yugi wanted to fight this. She was Atem's friend too, but the timer Yugi knew he had stopped him. He could only nod to her, letting her confidence fill him with some too. She was always braver than he was.

"Thank you. Who else is coming?" Yugi asked.

"I said I wasn't lettin' go of Atem dis time and I meant it. I'm seeing the kid off!" Joey announced as he jumped out of his chair.

"I'm coming too!" AJ yelled, just as ready as Joey.

"Oh, no you're not!" Rebecca grabbed AJ and pulled him back towards her. "You're staying here with me and your sister. I know this hurts but it's just too dangerous."

Both parents cringed when they saw tears started to fill AJ's eyes. A.J looked pleadingly at his father. Yugi couldn't keep eye contact. His shoulders slumped and he looked away.

"If we can, we will bring Atem back for a proper goodbye." Was all Yugi could say.

Joey walked over and put a hand on AJ's head. "Your mom and sister need you now. You have to be the man of the family, dat's a big job you know."

AJ pulled away from Joey and squeezed himself into a tight space between the chairs and wall. Joey looked back to Yugi with a sad shake of his head. Rebecca watched as her son slunk into the shadows. She knew the feeling all too well. She on many occasions had to stay behind so the older kids could save the world. Now she understood why. She could only hope AJ would eventually too.

They all then turned to Seto who had been talking to Marik and Bakura.

"There isn't time to pick us up. We'll try and catch a boat if we can. Just go." Marik said through the video call. He was standing next to Bakura who nodded.

"Your chances are better if you don't wait for us. While we're down here we can continue to trying to find information. Maybe one of these workers saw him." Bakura added. Yugi felt his mouth dry. Most of his friends wouldn't be with him this time. The thought seemed to blow a cold chill inside him.

"It'll also be better for you two to take a small helicopter. One that can better disappear into the night." Seto added before closing his laptop and striding out of the room. "Follow me. Téa, get down to Mokuba so you can start your distraction." Without giving Yugi any more time to argue Seto set out. Both Joey and Yugi had to run just to keep up with him.

"Wait Kaiba, you just said 'us two.' Are you not comin'?" Joey asked. Yugi almost stopped dead in his tracks when Seto nonchalantly nodded.

"Don't be surprised, Muto. It would look strange to the Sector Security director if the man running the tournament was not around." Seto kept his back to the two and continued on. His long strides were stopped however by the strong hand of Yugi on his shoulder.

"This is Atem," was all Yugi said. His voice did not quiver, it was back to being authoritative and strong. Because of this Seto remained still for many seconds, not even turning to face Yugi.

"I'll see him later." Seto then marched on without another word. Yugi's eyes grew wide. That was the most faith he had ever heard out of Seto in years. The last time Seto had let Atem leave without a fight he had become obsessed with the pharaoh, to the point that it forever cursed him.

"Come on Yuge. Trust Seto, he'll be fine." Joey words shook Yugi out of his frozen state. Slowly, a trusting smile found its way to Yugi's face.

Joey trusted Seto… he never in a million years thought that would be true. Then again, he never thought in a trillion years he'd see Atem living. These were just the things he had to accept after the Zero Reverse. Despite his friends not being physically there like they were in the past for villain fights, he wasn't doing this alone just as Atem was not. They were all working together in their different ways to keep each other safe. The way it always should be.

Yugi ran after Seto and as soon as he saw the helicopter, he jumped in with no more delays. Seto gave the two one last nod before he turned away as the helicopter took off. As Yugi watched the landing lights become glowing dots in the night air he suddenly felt absolutely cold. Not just a temperature kind of cold, the chill that runs up one's spine when true fear sets in. The chill of finding one's self lost or realizing one just helped an enemy get the upper hand. This feeling was even stranger to Yugi since it didn't quite feel like he was the one that was cold. It felt like he was sharing this feeling. Yugi could explain this even less than his epiphanies and yet he knew, something was wrong.

* * *

Jaden was leaning back in a large plush chair after his marathon of interviews. He needed a rest and was glad when his friends were able to pull him aside into their own lounge. He was surrounded by Jesse, Chazz, Alexis, Zane and his posse of duel spirits in a bright, warm room. He finally felt comfortable here, the first time all day.

"That was quite a duel there, buddy! You had my heart a poundin'." Jesse cheered as he slid a plate of fried food over to him. Jaden almost cried at the sight of the food and immediately dug in. He had been too nervous earlier that day to eat anything. Something he had regretted as soon as he was swarmed by reporters and fans.

"It's sad you didn't win, but no one can deny that you did better than any other duelist against Yugi. Can you believe that guy managed to keep a perfect winning streak his entire career?" Alexis said, making sure to block her face from the incoming rain of food crumbs.

"I know! It really was a sweet duel, until the end." Jaden happily said in-between bites.

The others in the room glanced at each other nervously. They had all been close enough to the duel to see Yugi nearly break down out of nowhere. Many reporters had also noticed this and asked Jaden about it. Each time they did Jaden stopped the discussion then and there. His kind voice turned harsh (a voice that Zane recognized a little too well) as he explained how he had not noticed any weakness in the old King of Games. Everyone was curious but if it was important enough for Jaden to keep it secret, they had to trust him.

"Most pro duelists are also impressed with you Jaden. Very few have officially beaten Yugi's Gandora combo, even less have defeated the Five-Headed Dragon in straight combat." Zane said as he was looking through social media. "While it will take time, I think people will accept you as the King of Games."

Jaden responded with a fist pump in the air echoed by the duel spirits around him. Even Ojama Yellow cheered, which got him an eye roll from Chazz,

"Aw, come on Boss! We're friends with the King of Games now! This is gonna get us way more popular!" The little monster cheered as he flitted around his partner. Chazz growled and lazily swatted the duel spirit away.

"You should listen to your partner Chazz. No one likes a sore loser at events like this." Jesse playfully prodded Chazz with his elbow. Chazz pushed him off and was about to walk away when he nearly stomped through a sulking duel spirit.

It was Neo-Spacian Grand Mole, curled in a ball and facing away from Jaden. The room was filled to the brim with duel spirits, it was almost impossible to not walk through them. Chazz was used to this kind of environment however, his own house was filled with even more spirits. He usually wouldn't care about going through a spirit, but this one…

"Why are you moping? Jaden did amazing in the duel." Chazz asked, a bit annoyed. He hated the fact that he was still was bitter about his loss. He wasn't going to let anyone else be as grouchy as himself or so help him Ra.

"I was right in his hand, in his hand!" The spirit grumbled to himself, not even noticing Chazz.

"Sorry there Chazz. He's just upset I didn't get to use him in the duel." Chazz managed to make out between Jaden's mouthfuls of food. The mole angrily grumbled at his master then scooted under the table Jaden was eating on.

"It's ok little guy. A lot of y'all didn't get a chance, but that doesn't mean you didn't help." Jesse bent down so he could look under the table.

"I was literally in his hand! He was about to use me! He even summoned Neos using Necroshade's ability so we could fuse, but then he had to be heroic and mature." The mole continued grumbling but Chazz wasn't listening anymore.

"You had Neo-Spacian Grand Mole in your final hand!" Chazz yelled. Everyone in the room paused as Chazz stomped over to Jaden. He slapped his hands down on the table, causing Jaden's plate to jump.

"I did," Jaden admitted, having a hard time swallowing his last mouthful.

"YOU WOULD HAVE WON!" Chazz shouted in a mixture of confusion and rage. Jaden's smile disappeared and he looked away from Chazz. This made Chazz grit his teeth and continue. "You could have normal summoned Grand Mole and then used Necroshade's ability to get Neos. You have the old Necroshade card which means his ability counts as an extra normal summons. With them, on the field, you could have gotten Elemental Hero Grand Neos! His ability is literally targeting one monster and returning it to the hand. You could have used it to get rid of 5 heads and then attack Yugi directly. He only had 300 more life points!" Chazz roared. Jaden continued to be silent.

"You would have won," Chazz repeated with a sigh as he felt all his anger drain out as quickly as it flowed in. He fell back in a chair shaking his head. The others in the room had their eyes glued to Jaden. The new king crossed his arms and turned back to the group with an almost somber face.

"I might have won if I did that." Jaden finally said. "You never know how duels will go, especially when fighting someone like Yugi. He still had many cards in his hand, while those in mine were my last few. If I went with that plan, he probably would have countered and the duel would go on even longer. At that point I really wasn't fighting the King of Games anymore, I was fighting a man about to lose a family member. That's not a duel I want to see as my crowning achievement."

The room went silent, even the duel spirits stopped their chatter. Jaden looked to each one of his friends, making sure they knew this was not something to be shared. He then uncrossed his arms and rested them behind his head, his carefree aura once again filling the room.

"Besides, actually destroying that dragon was way cooler than anything else I could have done. You have to at least admit that. It's a lot better than decking out." Jaden said with one of his famous grins. Zane was the next to smile.

"You wanted to end the duel on your terms." He said.

"Something like that I suppose." Jaden shrugged.

Laughter and chatter once again danced around the room as everyone relaxed. It was Alexis that looked directly at Jaden then. She remembered when he had first come to Duel Academy. Back then a battle with Chazz had ended early, but Jaden had been so sure he would have won thanks to the cards in his hand. She couldn't have convinced him otherwise if she tried. Now here Jaden was…

"Mr. Yuki?" The group turned as the towering Mokuba strode into the room. He exuded confidence, but they couldn't help notice that he seemed a little rushed. "The famous Téa Gardner is putting on a surprise show for your crowning as King of Games. It starts now, as in right now. Please follow me."

"Sweeet! Téa herself? Can this night get any better?" Jaden hooted as he jumped out of his chair. His friends couldn't help but chuckle as they followed the giddy King of Games out of the room. Their smiles disappeared however when Jaden suddenly stumbled forward as if he had just been hit in the back of the head.

"You ok?" Jesse asked as he caught Jaden. Jaden's whole body went rigid as he stared forward at nothing.

"The balance is off." He whispered. The hairs on the back of Jesse's neck went straight up. Jaden's voice sounded almost like two men were speaking at the same time.

"What do you mean?" Jesse asked.

"The balance between light and dark. It's wrong. The dark… the bad part of the dark…it's wrong."

* * *

"Yeah, people like you never win!" Téa yelled.

Atem couldn't see anything, yet he felt wind rushing past his face. Was he standing? It felt like any moment he would go flying back thanks to the strong force blowing against him. It was only his stubbornness and determination that kept him standing.

"What's this? More comments from the peanut gallery? Tell me, what is 'a person like me'?" The nasally voice of a young Weevil wormed its way into Atem's head. Atem suddenly felt so tired and empty, like someone had cut him open and scooped out everything inside. The only thing he had left was the guilt. The all-consuming guilt.

"You're a greedy, power-hungry worm." Atem felt himself say, with all the venom he could muster.

"What's that make you?"

The world materialized around Atem. He was on top of a speeding train surrounded by the Seal of Orichalcos. In front of him was the sneering Weevil, radiating over-confidence. Usually, Weevil's childish insults never got under Atem's skin, but here they hurt, they scarred.

"Correct me if I'm wrong, but aren't you the one who wanted power? So much that you sold out your best friend for a taste of it?" Weevil continued.

For a long moment Atem could only stand there. It was the truth and that wounded more than any monster attack. Atem felt back into his soul, it was hollow and cold. Yugi hadn't been there for eighteen years but it didn't matter at that moment. The homesickness and pain he still felt thanks to leaving New Domino combined to make the all-consuming guilt. It only made the dream seem more real. This was not like past nightmares where there was a difference between Atem and the Pharaoh. Here, Atem was simultaneously acting out the past and remembering the present as one entity. All he knew in the very pit of his heart was that Yugi was gone, whether it was by Dartz or his own choice. It was all his fault.

"That seems like a power-hungry monster to me." Weevil continued to laugh.

Atem tried to talk back to Weevil, to get him out of his head, but his own shaking hand betrayed him. He was losing, not just the duel but his hold on reality. Yugi had been the one to keep the pieces together. It had been the boy's true kindness that pulled Atem into the light. Yugi was so sure that the pharaoh wasn't a monster that Atem couldn't help but believe it himself. Yet, what had he done? In the back of Atem's mind, he could hear fire crackling with three adult men burning inside, trapped. He had caused that with another game-

I am not a monster. I had to do that to protect the world.

Atem felt himself play out the next turns almost like he was on strings. He expected and yet didn't know what was going to happen. He witnessed Poison Butterfly crack out of its cocoon, his eyes widened when the legendary dragon abandoned him. In the back of his mind, he wasn't surprised, it probably was the last remains of true Atem. It didn't change the fact that the pharaoh was losing his grip on everything. What made it worse was the awful feeling that something horrible was coming. This feeling made him more on edge as he summoned Breaker the Magical Warrior. He was about to continue his turn when Weevil cut in with a trap and more taunts.

"I'll tell you what. Because I feel sorry for you, I'd be willing to do you a little favor before you lose." Weevil snickered.

Atem then felt it, the fear that had been building up this entire duel was about ready to explode. Whatever had been putting him on edge was coming. Yet he had a feeling, the fear wasn't coming from what Weevil was about to do.

"You want to see Yugi right? His spirit is trapped with the same fate that you have. I know how to set you both free."

Atem slowly blinked. That was different, both sides of his mind knew that.

"What do you mean? Tell me how to save him right now!" Atem roared through the cutting wind.

Weevil once again laughed his grating laugh. Atem was about three seconds from ripping out the boy's vocal cords. Weevil then pulled out a small card.

"Your fate, to forever end up here. Not just on this train mind you. You are stuck here forever and because of that Yugi will be pulled here with too. If you want to free him, you'll need a special card. And I've got it right here. With this, you won't have to choose between your duty and your own happiness." He then held out the card. It was an average brown and black duel monster card.

Atem was suspicious but he was also tired. He wanted to rest. He didn't want to play these games anymore. He felt his feet move robotically. He didn't care at that point how unlikely it was that Weevil was telling true. He needed his partner, he needed his family. He hadn't even noticed that Weevil had given him a command. When he didn't listen, Weevil's smirk grew even larger.

"Oh well, guess that means I need to teach you a lesson on manners." Atem stopped dead as he saw Weevil reach with his other hand towards the card. He knew what was coming.

Weevil ripped the card completely in two.

The little card ripping made more of an impact on Atem than any wind, insult, or attack. Atem had expected it, yet it was pure agony. It shattered through the empty haze of his mind and hit him at his very core. At the same time, Atem felt something else ripping. Back when this duel first took place it had been his restraint, now it was his sanity. The Condor had been waiting for this.

Atem screamed, all his grief and guilt came bursting forth. It felt like his very insides were trying to claw their way out. As he yelled Weevil continued to laugh. His laugh twisted, it started to sound like Dartz's laugh, then Yami Marik's. The laugh echoed and warped, jumping to every person Atem had ever faced. They were all laughing at him. Atem quivered as the laughter surround him on all sides. So many enemies that at one time or another wanted to end him. Then another group added to the joyous noise. Atem blinked and saw his father, his friends, his priests, all joining in.

"You have already defeated this one, Atem! Do what you have to do and move on to the next one!" His father chuckled.

Atem shook his head then looked back to Weevil, behind the boy grew a never-ending line of nightmares and enemies that Atem would have to fight in the future. He couldn't see the end of it.

"Get moving Atem, you have a long road ahead of you. You are the only one that can finish them. It is your destiny." His father added. Atem with his whole body still shaking looked onward at the villains he had left to fight. Even where he was supposed to finally rest the enemies never ended. He then looked slightly to the side. Another line of enemies grew from him, this time it was for Yugi's future fights. The two lines weaved and bobbed in and out of each other. It was then Atem didn't feel empty anymore

He felt it slowly light inside of him, it was small at first but then it blasted forth. Rage. Pure, untainted wrath. Not just at Weevil. The Condor allowed Atem to remember everything. How he had to leave his family on multiple occasions. How he had to sacrifice his mind and body just to keep the world together. And most recently, how he had to once again choose between his happiness and the world. All the rage he had hidden over the years regarding his destiny blazed. It burned away any restraint, any kindness left in the teen.

"You ok over there? I would personally love to have such a great destiny. It makes sure you are always the Pharaoh, no matter how much time passes." Weevil sneered.

Oh yes, Atem was the pharaoh. He had been one for over five thousand years at this point. Never once had he gotten a break, never once had he gotten a choice. Forever playing games where people's lives were on the line. Just when he thought he could rest he was pushed into all this again. His friends had asked him to be a normal teen but how could he have done that when he didn't even know what normal was?!

Atem stopped quivering then. No, he was never meant to be "normal". His father, the priests, the Higher Ups, even his friends, they all called it being a hero but Atem finally understood. He was their own personal monster, grown to take care of anything that got in their way. It was always destiny or some prophecy but it was all the same. He was a monster.

He was done pretending otherwise

The world seemed to twist as Atem's rage built to its boiling point. Weevil didn't even get a chance to finish his little joke before Atem was playing his next move. He had to end it all, make him suffer. That's just what monsters did.

Atem looked at his card. To his surprise, Berserker Soul wasn't in his hand anymore. It was a monster card. The small part of his mind that was not yet blazing with fury knew something was wrong. Playing this card would break many of the game's rules, but then again, there were no rules in a dream. This card was the manifestation of Atem's need for revenge on the world, it could do whatever he wanted it to. In return, it only asked for his soul.

This is wrong.

Atem ignored the small remaining piece of sanity. It sounded too much like his abandoned partner. Because of him, innocent Yugi was pulled into this monster's never-ending fight. The Pharaoh could almost forgive the world for dooming himself, but he could never excuse doing it to his partner.

"I summon Earthbound Immortal Wiraqocha Rasca!" Atem announced. A twisted smile spread across his face. A smile only a few got to see and even fewer came away with their mind intact. Weevil's own smile fell into pure terror as the Seal of Orichalcos changed. It turned a neon violet and warped. Its intersecting lines and runes fell apart and reconnected in the shape of a great bird. The lines then began to shine as the horrid creature burst forth.

It was bigger than the train and darker than the blackest night. It seemed to absorb any sunlight that touched it, leaving only the cold void of the bird. The only color that came from it was the ancient, violet designs that outlined everything from its wings to its feathered tail.

Atem pointed at Weevil. The beast roared and charged the unprepared child. What Atem saw as Weevil the Condor saw as the thing that had stopped it last time. Two names hung in front of the bird. Atem and Yami. Instead of trying for both the Condor reached out with its clawed feet and ripped into the name Atem. It was finally all its own. As it cawed with grim satisfaction Atem echoed with his own roar. A combination of laughter and held back tears.

Atem felt the world fall out from under him, this time he accepted it. He wasn't anywhere near done. He felt a new power surging through him, it wasn't shadowy like how Zorc had been or kind like the Gentle Darkness. It was a lust to be the monster he always was.

As he fell, he saw a familiar sight. Téa. She had been behind him the entire duel. Her eyes showed sadness and fear, similar to what he had seen in the little girl back in the Satellite. For a split second, Atem realized what he had let loose.

With that Atem was no more.


	38. Welcome to the Satellite

"So Atem has to do some ceremony for dis Crimson Dragon?" Joey asked.

"That's what I remembered. It has to be at the old Ener-D reactor but that's all I know." Yugi said as he held the Silent Magician card he had written on during his duel with Jaden. He then put the card back in his backpack. Out the window of the helicopter was Gandora and Dark Magician Girl flying beside them. They looked just as concerned as he felt.

The helicopter ride seemed too long. Maybe it was because they were trying to be discreet, maybe it was because the island really was that far away from New Domino, but most likely it was because Yugi was still freezing. He had a very thick coat on but the chill seemed to come from inside. He sat as far away from the windows as he could and curled up. In contrast, Joey was leaning heavily on the windows, looking out into the black night.

"It's startin' to snow," Joey said.

"What? Really?" Yugi said as he looked outside. Just as Joey said, small flakes of white were beginning to float by. Both men glanced back to each other with furrowed brows, with Joey rubbing the back of his neck.

"It is gettin' to be winter." Joey shrugged with one shoulder. He then looked out once more and shook his head at the snowflakes. "Hey, pilot! Is dis gonna affect our flight?" Joey tapped on the back of the seat in front of him.

"No, not now at least. We should be able to land in the Satellite just fine." The pilot said. "There is a report of smoke coming from an abandoned tunnel. That's where we're landing. It could be faulty electronics, but it also could be the boy you're looking for."

"Smoke?" Yugi quietly gasped. Joey turned back to Yugi when he heard the little gasp.

"It's gonna be fine Yuge. Dis is Atem we're talkin' about." Joey said.

Yugi looked up to his friend and recognized his voice and expression. That was the look Joey used to take on when the pain of the Pharaoh's passing was becoming too much for Yugi. While Joey was a lot better than before, he still had a long way to go mental-wise. Same for Kaiba. While therapy was helping, they still had quite a journey ahead of them. They did not need to add Yugi's own grief on to it. Yet Yugi knew from Joey himself, he better not bottle up these emotions either. Yugi decided he would figure out something later. For now, he had to focus on the objective in front of him.

"We are about to land." The pilot said.

Both looked out to see the great broken city. The sun had already set and the clouds were blocking any moonlight. The only lights were the occasional flickering street lamps. These cast large shadows, causing the surrounding buildings to morph and turn into looming giants. The helicopter seemed so small in comparison.

"It's so different," Yugi whispered.

"Ya, weird to think dis used to be our stompin' grounds," Joey said, recognizing an old street he used to bike down. The two fell silent, not being able to find the words for their old home. They then looked ahead to see a massive smokestack. It was curling out of a street-wide crevasse, mixing with the falling snow to cover everything in a thin grey powder. There was no one around the fissure, in fact, there seemed to be no one for miles.

"If there's a fire down there, shouldn't there be security to help?" Yugi asked. The pilot shrugged.

"Why? No one cares if this side of the island burns. It's too close to the dead zero around the earthquake's origin point." Yugi looked to Joey. They both knew what they were actually close to was the original Ener-D reactor. The pilot then continued to talk as he landed the helicopter. "There's a curfew so everyone should be in their designated shelters. If some satellite scum got caught over here it's their own fault." Joey's hands balled into fists and it looked like he was about to say something, but Yugi put a hand on his shoulder to stop him.

As soon as the pilot opened the side door, the two burst out. The pilot would stay with the copter in case they needed a quick escape and they would look for Atem. The first stop was the crevasse. As Yugi and Joey got closer they noticed a small group near the edge. Three men to be exact. One man helping pull another out of the hole, and a bright red-haired guy sitting dazed by the side. Joey and Yugi immediately ran to help the last man climb out of the hole.

"Thanks. I didn't think I'd get out in time-" The man trailed off once he saw who had just saved him. His other friend also stared slack-jawed at the two dueling champions. The only one not gawking was the red-haired man.

"Dude… hey, Ren!" One of the two nudged the man named Ren with his elbow and that seemed to shake him awake.

"Huh? Oh sh…"

"We can do autographs later. We are lookin' for someone, a teen with his same hair." Joey said, gesturing to Yugi.

"We've seen him! We were actually chasing after him because he… was going into a dangerous tunnel. Right, Ren?" One of the men said as they looked to their companion. Ren stared at Yugi a while longer, then shook his head.

"Ah, sure… Look, I'll be honest with ya, I can't remember how I got here." Ren said while rubbing his head.

"What?!" His two friends yelped.

"You don't remember running all around this gods-forsaken city for that brat!" One yelled, seeming to have forgotten that Yugi was there. Hearing Atem be referred to as brat made Yugi's clench his fists, but he kept his mouth shut.

"I remember the boat and the one-armed man… But that's it." Ren said. Both his friends just about tackled him in frustration, yelling about how he had dragged them into whatever misadventure they had been on.

"Hey, Hey! We need to know if Atem's still down dere!" Joey yelled over the fighting group. Yugi narrowed his eyes as he observed the three men.

"Where. Is. Atem?" His simple, quiet, question made the men immediately freeze in place.

"We don't know. Thanks to some… faulty wiring down there a fire started. I personally chased the boy into a tunnel away from the fire. There, he hit his head against a wall and was knocked out. I tried to bring him back to the surface but then…" the man trailed off. "…I…was blown unconscious by, something."

"I just barely found him in time to bring him up here. Atem was nowhere around. This hole was the only way out." The other man added.

"No." Yugi breathed. Joey quickly gripped Yugi's arm.

"He's fine, I know it," Joey said then returned to the men. "I feel like you aren't telling us everything. Now if you don't start talking now, I'll..." Joey continued on into some tirade, but Yugi wasn't listening. His gaze fell far off into the shadow of the city's destroyed buildings. The lack of light made it hard to tell for others, but Yugi was sure. He recognized one of the building's silhouette.

"My grandpa's shop."

Joey stiffened and slowly turned to where Yugi was looking.

"Holy Silfer, you're right," Joey uttered. Away from the coiling smoke was a destroyed street corner, no longer connected to any road. Standing tall as if to defy the rubble around it was the slanted game store.

Yugi's eyes were only on the lost building. The cold he felt earlier got more intense the longer he focused on the shop. He felt his heart start to thump against his chest. His feet then moved without him being conscious of it. He walked past the sitting men without giving a second glance.

"Hey, Yuge… Yugi!" Joey said as he ran after him. Joey then turned to the three men and glared at them. "Don't you move. I still have questions for you." He said as he pointed at his eyes, then pointed to the group with those two same fingers. He quickly caught up to Yugi and pulled out a flashlight from his shorter friend's backpack.

"And I thought you were paranoid for always packin' dese for tournaments." Joey chuckled as he let the light beam fall on the store. Its bright paint had faded leaving a muddied, almost cartoonish shamble of the shop. Its glass windows were long gone, only the destroyed shreds of promotions remained sitting in the front. The wind blew through the empty shop and picked up one the tattered cardboard cutouts. It landed by Yugi's feet. He slowly blinked, as if not believing what was at his feet. Then he picked up the cutout of a yellow, mouse-like creature. His video game's promotion.

"I remember the day I came back to Domino city. I had just released this game and was preparing to move in." Yugi said, staring at the smiling creature for a long while. He then tossed the cardboard behind him. "Come on, let's get back to those men-" The two suddenly heard movement inside the shop. Joey quickly flashed the light through the open window, throwing the beam in every direction. Then the two saw him, he was sitting on the front counter with his legs lazily crossed out in front of him. He was covered in soot and black splotches, but he was gently smiling.

"Atem!" Joey cried out as he vaulted the store window and ran into the shop. Atem grinned and happily accepted Joey's hug. He then turned to Yugi who was still standing dumbstruck outside the shop.

"Yugi." Atem breathed.

"Yugi? Yugi!? Joey's right here ya nimrod!" Joey yelled, with a hint of laughter. Giving a hardy noogie to the teen. Atem chuckled and gently pushed Joey off him.

"Yugi, I…" Atem's grin slowly disappeared as Yugi continued to stare at him, unmoving.

Being unable to find his words, the teen then reached behind the counter he was sitting on and pulled out a flashlight. His light, plus Joey's light helped illuminate the dark store. Inside was completely ruined and scavenged. The once bright and colorful store was now as destroyed and brown as the city around it. Only cardboard promotions and the occasional mouse still lived there. Letting the flashlight cast long, twisting shadows on the wall.

"I'm sorry Yugi. For leaving so abruptly. I know I hurt you. Yugi…I…" Atem tried to say again, but his words died away. The two remained still, staring at each other like the rest of the world didn't exist.

"Why are you here, at this store?" Yugi eventually said. Pulling his gaze away and looking at the ground, letting the shade of his bangs hide his eyes.

"I thought you might come here. I knew the smoke would attract attention and then this shop would bring you." Atem said as he got up from the counter and gestured around.

"Why wait for us? Don't you have to save the world or somethin'?" Joey asked. Atem's smile came back as he turned to Joey.

"I did. Back at the stadium I thought leaving was the only way to save the world, but now I've found another way. A way that allows me to stay."

"Stay?!" Joey gasped. Yugi remained unmoving.

"Yes, that is why I need you guys. Or more specifically Yugi." Atem said. "It can only be done together." He then went to the back of the counter and pulled out his backpack. Inside the bag glittered thanks to the light bouncing off the golden treasures inside. Atem reached in and pulled out the Millennium Puzzle. Seeing this made Joey stumble back, he looked to Yugi for any kind of reaction but found none.

"Ho-how!?" Joey bellowed. He ran up and grabbed the puzzle, fighting for breath as he turned the gold pyramid over in his hands. Atem let him have it as he walked up to the window.

"I need your help. Together we put this puzzle together, and together we have to break it apart." He said.

"Wait, what!? Did miss something?" Joey asked.

"We have to disconnect the pieces. I've tried to on my own but I can't do it. It seems to be put together with something stronger this time." Atem said with a hint of a snarl. "It can only be broken by the last person to put it together." Atem let that hang in the air as he gestured for Joey to throw him the puzzle.

"Dat little stipulation would have been helpful back when we were teens. What's different about the puzzle dis time?" Joey asked. Atem didn't acknowledge his friends and kept his eyes on Yugi. Joey, with his brows furrowed, did as asked and tossed the item over. Atem caught it and held it out to Yugi.

"I know this means… a lot to us. But by doing this I can stay, here, with you. No more problems with Signers and dragons. We can even stop the world from continually calling us back into action. We can just be a normal family." Atem begged. A few more seconds of silence, then Yugi reached out for the puzzle.

"Your hands are ice cold, Atem," Yugi said as he took the puzzle.

"I wasn't exactly dressed for this weather, I was prepared for the lights of the stadium. I even had to swim in the tunnels today." Atem said with a shrug, pulling slightly on his oil covered jacket. Yugi nodded. He began to fiddle with the puzzle and the chain it was attached to.

"Really? It's a miracle you didn't freeze to death. But what's more of a miracle is how you got all dese items. I thought they were in the afterlife." Joey said as he pointed to inside the backpack.

"The Crimson Dragon gave them to me in a dream," Atem explained. Joey waited for more explanation but none came.

"Eh, I guess that's just something I'm gonna have to accept. But I gotta know, why will destroying the Millennium Puzzle help you stay?" Joey asked.

"By breaking this, the other items won't work in the ceremony," Yugi said as he started to step away from the window. Atem's eyes narrowed as Yugi jumped away from his grasp. Yugi then quickly place the puzzle around his neck. He hadn't worn it in over eighteen years, yet it felt like he had never taken it off.

"By breaking this the Crimson Dragon's ceremony won't work and the Earthbound Immortals will be free with no Signers to stop them," Yugi growled. "Get out of there Joey! That isn't Atem!"

Joey's eye widened in surprise and he immediately went into action. He grabbed Atem's backpack and ran for the door with all his might, but the long shadows got to him first. He suddenly tripped with bag flying out of his grasp. While on the ground he felt several cold things slither over him and hold him down. By the window, Atem sighed.

"Tsk. Those epiphanies are getting a little on the annoying side, but they've got one thing wrong. I am very much Atem. I've just been awakened." With that Atem threw off his jacket. In a second, the whites of his eyes turned a dark black with his irises returning to their original blood red hue. Two zagging lines stretched out from the side of his eyes and rested by his ears. Leaving two dark red tattoos in its path. His clothing changed to a black robe and cape combo, all accented by bright violet designs. The patterns reminded Yugi of the South American outlines he had seen during his research of the Immortals, but these had a distinct hieroglyphic twist to them.

"Yugi. Break that puzzle. With it, we can finally be free." Atem asked, nearly ordered. Yugi continued to back up.

"I don't know what the Earthbound Immortals are going to do to the world, but the fact that they are considered as bad a Zorc gives me enough incentive to not trust them. Remember Zorc, Atem? You spent most of your life fighting against him!" Yugi yelled. Atem slowly nodded, glaring at the puzzle around Yugi's neck.

"I remember. I remember how I had to give up my life and my very sanity to fight him, only to then drag you guys in with me. All without a choice." Atem snarled. Yugi took another step back.

"That-that's not even close to what actually… Look, Atem I know you're in-"

"There is no 'Atem I know in there'! I am Atem Muto, I am your brother. I'm just done pretending to be fine with everything." Atem declared. "The other Immortals will be out very soon and I am using them to get my revenge on the world. I am going to do what I was trained for, destroy the enemy. However, this time I am choosing who I fight and why!"

The wind began to pick up, blowing large flecks of snow past the two. The smoke cloud behind them was blown away thanks to the incoming storm. Behind Yugi, Atem could see a group of three men slink into the city. For a moment he paused, but then he put his focus back on Yugi and the Millennium Puzzle.

"You know I can't let you do that Atem. There has to be something inside you that knows this is wrong." Yugi tried. His gaze then shifted to see Joey stand or, be forced to stand thanks to shadow magic. New anger entered Yugi's gaze. Atem noticed this and looked back to Joey.

"Do not worry. I simply didn't want him running away with my bag." Atem said as he grabbed his backpack. The shadows disappeared and Joey ran out of the shop to Yugi's side. "And before you worry about Jaden, I did not get this power from him. I can tell he has already given all that to you." Atem said with a sideways grin.

Joey looked to Yugi with a questioning gaze but Yugi kept his eyes on the backpack.

"The Earthbound Immortals, He's getting his power from them, Yugi!" Joey whispered.

"I know, the new outfit was a pretty good giveaway." Yugi snapped under his breath. Joey flinched at his words. "Sorry, that was harsh. I just… I knew as soon as I saw him, he wasn't my Atem." Yugi then looked back to the bag. "If we could get those items to the reactor, maybe we could somehow start the ritual for the Crimson Dragon…" Yugi whispered. After they got the items Yugi didn't know what they were going to do. He had been receiving so many epiphanies at this point it was less like he was remembering and more like someone was whispering these things to him. However, with Atem standing in front of him in the Dark Signer garb, it was becoming hard for Yugi to even think his own thoughts. He couldn't make out the epiphanies anymore.

As Yugi tried to figure out a plan, he found himself naturally playing with the Millennium Puzzle, feeling its grooves and edges. Eventually, his thumb landed on the Eye of Wadjet. This gave Yugi an idea.

"Atem, I challenge you to a shadow game!" Yugi announced. This made even Atem fall silent as the snow began to flurry around them, all centering around Yugi. Joey gasped and took a tentative step away from the circling wind. He rubbed his eyes but it was no use, he could see duel monsters through the wind. Gandora standing with Dark Magician Girl at her side. Both looking absolutely panicked.

"I accept," Atem said after he was able to collect himself. Yugi recognized the confident expression and stance he took on. In front of him was the original King of Games. "If I win you help me destroy that puzzle."

"Fine, and if I win you leave Atem's body!" Yugi yelled through the wind. Atem rolled his eyes.

"I can't leave, this is my body. The Immortal you are referring to has no control over me. It's only there to keep my body going. If it left, I would die again and my soul would be pulled into the netherworld with it!" Atem said.

This made Yugi pull the puzzle closer to himself. It was too late to take the challenge back. Once a shadow game has been accepted by both parties, there was no stepping out. Yugi inhaled deep and nodded. He would figure out a way, he had always figured out something in the past. The golden Eye of Wadjet appeared once again on his forehead, the wind and snow picked up into an almost deafening roar.

"I assume we are dueling." Atem grinned at his opponent. Yugi saw as Atem started to reach down towards his belt. Yugi then noticed a card pouch that came with Atem's new outfit. Just by looking at it, he felt the darkness radiating from those cards. It was enough to even make the spirits of Gandora and Dark Magician Girl cringe away. Yugi looked around frantically for an idea, he could not quickly make up a game out of nowhere as Atem could. His eyes then rested on the yellow cutout from his game's promotion.

"No, we are not," Yugi said. This made everyone, including the spirits freeze and stare wide-eyed to Yugi. "We are also not dueling here." Yugi then brought his hands up, using the magic he somehow knew how to use. With the flick of his wrist, the whole group was gone. In a blink of an eye, they found themselves floating above a dead land. For miles, it was nothing but completely flattened earth, until it got to a ring of rubble buildings that slowly grew into the city of the Satellite. Right below them was a deep hole about a mile wide. Inside this hole was crisscrossing walkways slightly illuminated by red emergency lights. All led down to a metal monstrosity. It was asleep, for now.

"The original Ener-D reactor." Yugi breathed. Then the group began to fall. Yugi and Atem were able to quickly leap to adjacent pathways. Joey however, did not have the fitness the two had. He fell, flailing past them.

"Joey!" Yugi screamed. Just then Joey was suddenly thrown to the side midair, landing roughly on a lower platform. Yugi turned to see the glowing eye on Atem's forehead. Once it disappeared Atem had to catch his breath, but then he was right back to being the confident pharaoh. Yugi looked back down to see Joey slowly stumbling to his feet. He was gingerly holding his arm, but he gave Yugi one of his famous smiles and a thumbs up.

"How did you do that, Yugi?" Atem asked, not even looking at his friend below. This got Yugi to turn his attention back to the teen.

"What?"

"Teleport. I don't care if you're suddenly learning all this high-level magic. Teleporting is something even out of the Gods range." Atem said. Yugi rubbed the back of his head.

"I noticed that sometimes when a shadow duel happened, the instigator of the duel could take a person to a new location, usually the shadow realm. So, I thought this shadow game could move us…" Yugi said. He then realized who he was explaining this to and shut his mouth.

Atem slowly shook his head and smiled. "Even now you are doing things with magic I could never dream of, and I had all the training." Atem said with an annoyed sigh. "Once this is all over, I really want to talk to you about these epiphanies."

"Well, I learned this directly from my old partner. Shadow games can free a person from an entity controlling them and that's what I plan to do. I also refuse to duel with whatever evil cards you have. So, I choose the game! Reach into that backpack. If you really are Atem, you'll know what you need."

Atem raised an eyebrow but did as asked. He rummaged around the bag until his hand fell on his handheld. He pulled it out with a twisted grin on his face. He tossed the bag behind him and open the gaming system.

"We are playing the game I invented. We are Pokémon battling!" Yugi yelled as he pulled out his own device.

With a push of a button the two devices connected. Shadow magic helped bring the already implemented solid vision to life. Six red and white balls appeared by both Atem's and Yugi's side. Each grabbed one and threw it out into the space between their two walkways.

* * *

Joey looked up in horror as a familiar dark barrier formed around his best friends. He had thought Yugi was only threatening the shadow game.

"He wouldn't…" Joey breathed.

He had to shield his eyes as the two threw their Poké Balls into the air in front of them. They opened with a bright light to reveal two creatures Joey didn't recognize. While Yugi had tested his game on Joey during the building process, that was the most he had ever seen. When it came time to actually play the game, it only reminded him of his lost friend. Even when Yugi was back Joey found his time taken up by other… activities. The most he knew about the game was that attacks were done at the same time, no taking turns like in Duel Monsters. Each opponent announced their creature's action at the same time, and each creature had only one move per round. No spell or trap cards either, everything was done by the creatures themselves in the one move they had.

Joey yelled in frustration and started running towards the end of his walkway. He had to get to his friends. As he ran, he looked up at the battle. On Atem's side was a lion-like creature with flames in its mane, it had just finished breathing fire on a purple fox on Yugi's side. Even though the fox was complexly engulfed it remained on its two legs. It then released a wave of psychic energy from itself that didn't seem to damage the lion in the least. However, it did make the fox look stronger. Joey gasped when he saw the fire from the lion, blaze its way over to Yugi. It burned him, more than any solid vision would. While Yugi took it in stride, Joey felt his heart stop. This really was a shadow duel. His put his focus back on getting to his friends and now he wasn't stopping for anything.

* * *

"Really? A shiny Delphox, first turn?" Atem said with a hint of a chuckle. The fox's programming made the hologram stand taller when it heard its name.

"Why not? It's a magician fox that uses dark magic and it's purple. I couldn't resist." Yugi said with a wincing smile. His studied Atem closely to see any reaction from him. A hint of worry for Yugi's pain or any recognition in Dark Magician's lookalike Pokémon. The Pharaoh remained staunch and uncaring.

"Next turn, Go!" Cried their little handhelds.

"Calm Mind!" Yugi yelled

"Fire Blast!" Atem commanded. It went down the same as last turn, fire blazed through Yugi and his Delphox. Both stumbled back, but both were able to stay standing. The Delphox focused and another strengthening psychic wave shot out of it.

"You can't defend forever Yugi. Don't hold back now, I have been through much more painful shadow games." Atem called.

"I know, just wait!" Yugi shot back. Atem noticed that Yugi wasn't watching him or his Pokémon. Atem was about to turn to see where he was looking when the handheld announced the next round. Atem once again ordered Fire Blast. The flaming ball shot at the still smoking Delphox, but thanks to its now very calm mind it was able to take the attack with only a few hit points left and finally send an attack back.

"Psychic!" Yugi yelled. The fox took a deep breath and seemed to summon all the shadows in the area. It held it all in a pink ball in its arms that slowly grew larger until it was bigger than Atem's lion. The Delphox grinned and release the destructive wave. In one hit the fire lion was destroyed and Atem was sent flying back. He quickly caught into the side railing and pulled himself up. It was less the blast that hurt him and more the cranium splitting headache that was the aftermath. Now he knew what a mind crush felt like.

"Good move." Atem conceded as he got up. Atem gave a surprisingly gentle smile back to Yugi and picked out his next Pokémon. Yugi nodded and reached up to rest his hand on the Millennium Puzzle, trying to keep Atem's gaze only on the puzzle.

While Atem planned Yugi quickly glanced down to the lower walkways. Joey was rushing around trying to find his way to them, he wasn't even looking up. Yugi gritted his teeth and hid his other hand behind his back. Atem's next Pokémon appeared on the battlefield in a golden sarcophagus. For a moment the casket remained still, then it burst forth with shadowy hands and a sharp-toothed grin.

"Cofagrigus, of course." Yugi grinned a clearly fake smile.

"What? You're allowed a Dark Magician fox and I can't have an Egyptian ghost?" Atem bantered back. Yugi kept up his fake smile to hide his worry. This was not going well. That ghost's attacks would be super effective against his already hurt Delphox, and he needed Joey to look up. Yugi used the hand behind his back to pull out his cellphone. He kept it hidden from Atem's view and tried his best to text Joey without looking at his screen.

Joey suddenly felt his phone ring in his pocket. He was going to ignore it but it was Yugi's ringtone. He pulled it out and a crease grew above his brow

"liik yp behund Aren?" Joey called up. Yugi cringed and threw his phone back in his bag before Atem could see. The pharaoh raised an eyebrow and looked down at Joey.

"Next turn, Go!" Before either of them could finish their thoughts, they had to yell out their next moves. Delphox was faster this time and was able to send off its own fire blast, but the Cofagrigus was able to pull into its coffin body and survive. It still caused the Pokémon to be pushed back into Atem, but once the Pokémon popped back out Delphox had no chance against the shadowy ball the ghost sent its way.

As Atem stood back up, he noticed something odd. Shiny Delphox usually had red eyes, but before it was knocked out he could have sworn it look at him with pleading blue eyes. Atem shook his head. It had to be the snowstorm, or maybe Yugi had programmed his own personal Delphox to have those eyes to look more like Mahad.

Mahad.

For a moment Atem froze, not announcing his next attack. Yugi noticed this and let himself hope for a second.

 _Another poor soul stuck with your destiny. You will be freeing him too._

Atem announced his next attack with a bestial snarl.

Yugi's next Pokémon was a purple and black dragon with three heads called Hydreigon. Hydreigon was able to take the ghost's next attack easy. In return, it did little damage to Yugi, but he still defended himself. As he covered his face he looked back down. Joey was still staring up with a tilted head. Yugi made eye contact with Joey and quickly glanced to behind Atem. Joey looked that way and noticed Atem's backpack. It was balancing near the edge of the walkway, it was blown back thanks to Delphox's attacks. Joey realized what Yugi wanted and nodded to him. He raced across the walkway as Yugi turned back to Atem. He had to keep Atem's eyes off Joey.

"Why? Why are you doing this?" Yugi called.

"I thought I made that pretty obvious. I finally realized just how little control I had over my life." Atem yelled. "Ever since I've been born it's been one villain or prophecy after another. Even when I thought I could finally rest." Atem's eyes fell on Yugi, for a moment he remembered the bruised and bleeding man that surrendered in their last ceremonial battle. The fear Atem had felt back then. "But to stop a mistake that I didn't even make I was pulled back into all this. What is even worse is that you and all our friends got yanked in too. It never ends Yugi!" Atem shouted with enough raw emotion to make Yugi step back. He then spoke in a much weaker voice. "It never ends…" For a moment Yugi could truly see the five-thousand-years on the Pharaoh's face. Then his anger returned. "I want those in charge to never do what they did to us again!" Atem yelled.

"That's… That's not what happened Atem. We chose to do what we did." Yugi stuttered.

"Did we? Sure, we could have backed out at any moment, but the world would have been destroyed a thousand times over. We truly had no choice but to repeatedly throw ourselves into danger. And not just us. Think of Jaden and others like him. He just wanted to duel, yet he's ended up having to fuse his soul with two separate beings just to keep the world together. We had no choice and we took the damage for these higher beings." Atem then looked out at the Pokémon on the field. They didn't have spirits as duel monsters did, they only ever did their preprogramed movements, even in a shadow game. "We are nothing but game pieces. I am done! I'm taking back what is mine and all of ours. Our lives!"

Atem announced his next attack and Yugi had to think quick. He glanced down to see Joey was in place.

"Earthquake!" Yugi ordered.

Hydreigon nodded and shot towards Cofagrigus. She tackled the sarcophagus Pokémon into Atem's walkway. Then Hydreigon slammed into her enemy with all the power of the earth. Atem was unable to stay on his feet as the entire walkway shook. As Atem waited for the quaking to stop, he questioned something. Hydreigon nodded to Yugi, that wasn't a preprogramed action. In fact, pushing his Pokémon into the walkway and then attacking also wasn't. He looked around frantically until he saw it. As Hydreigon returned to Yugi, a faint outline of a red and black dragon flew out of the Pokémon.

'Ah Gandora, you chose to join the fight even if you weren't summoned.' Atem smiled as he stood up. 'So, the duel spirits can possess these holograms too.' He was about to point out the dragon when he heard a small thump. His turned back to see his bag slipped off the edge. Atem jumped for it but it fell from his grasp. His looked down to see Joey ready to catch it.

"No!" Atem shot his hand out and for a moment the bag started coming back towards him. Then Joey made a wild leap, grabbing it inflight and landing on a walkway lower down. He stopped painfully on his bad arm, but he didn't care. He felt the bag try to pull itself out of his grip but he held on tight. Atem slammed his fist on the ground and stood back up.

"Yes! Good job Joey!" Yugi yelled down. His two duel spirits allowed themselves to be fully seen now that Atem knew about them. They cheered too.

"So, we are allowing other spirits to be part of this game? Fine with me." Atem said in a collected voice. He let a twisted smile stretch across his face. Yugi had seen many serial killer smiles in this life, real and fiction, but Atem's always seemed to beat them all.

Atem sent out his next Pokémon, it was a steel-armored bug called Escavalier. For a moment it looked completely normal, then Yugi made eye contact with it. A shiver jumped down his spine. The same evil power he felt from Atem's cards radiated from Yugi's own creation. Atem then pointed at Joey and the Escavalier blasted towards him.

"Oh, no you don't." Yugi then nodded to Gandora who hopped back into Hydreigon's hologram and blocked Escavalier's path. "We still have a battle!"

"Hey, Yuge?" Yugi back looked down to Joey. He stood with the bag open. "What do I do now?"

Yugi rubbed the back of his neck and looked to his spirits. Both girls shrugged. This was as far as their plan to do the ceremony got. They all turned when Atem began chuckling.

"Of course, when you need them most your epiphanies fail you. Just like most things from the Higher Ups." Atem laughed. Yugi looked pleadingly to Dark Magician Girl

"We know less about Afterlife ceremonies then you do." Dark Magician Girl shrugged. Joey listened in and when he heard what Dark Magician Girl said, he snapped his fingers.

"I got it! Keep dat Immortal busy." Joey yelled up as he ran with the bag slung over his shoulder.

* * *

Past the walkway was a room that connected to many sets of stairs and broken machinery. While in there, Joey pulled out his phone and dialed a number. Suddenly, he felt a great shake from outside. He turned to see that once again Hydreigon had blocked Atem's creature from getting in. Joey quickly ran from the opening and started racing down, away from the battle.

"Come on, come on! Pick up, you creepy brit-"

"Joey! Is something wrong?" Bakura's voice came through on the other end of the phone.

"A lot of things." A blast once again shook the old building, causing a piece of equipment to fall in Joey's path. He managed to stop himself from tripping and jumped over it. "But dat's not important right now. I need a ceremony! Something by the Crimson Dragon if you could."

"What?!" Marik's voice came over the line too. "What's going on?!"

"Oh good, your dere too. Are you guys anywhere near Bakura's occult books?"

"Ah, yes. We couldn't get a boat ride so we are at our house trying to coordinate with everyone else." Bakura said. Joey could hear pages turning in the background and Marik quietly cursing.

"Find in one of those books something about Crimson Dragon ceremonies that require the Millennium Items," Joey said as he ran across another walkway. He glanced up to see Hydreigon defeated, but Escavalier also going down at the same time.

"Wha-why?! This is not just something I can just look up in the table of contents." Bakura's voice shook.

"Atem's being controlled and the fate of the world is in the balance. Our usual." Joey said. Bakura joined Marik's cursing as more page turning could be heard. As they worked, Joey stopped and looked below him one level. Beside him was a massive tube about the size of his house that continued down past where Joey could see. On the level below was a smashed control panel attached to the tube. As he was looking at it, Joey suddenly felt a tug. He reached into the bag and pulled out the Millennium Ring. Looking at the item that had hurt his friends so much made him want to throw the thing. Then he remembered something.

"Hey, you have some weird connection to the afterlife, right? Thanks to your time with the Thief King?" Joey asked, making sure not to yell this time. He heard a thud in the background, probably a dropped book.

"Why do you ask? While yes, I think I do. It is nothing like Yugi's epiphanies." Bakura explained.

"I feel like the veil between dis life and the next is pretty thin right now. I'm seeing duel spirits and holding the Millennium Items in my hand. Anything you could get from our friends on the other side would be great." Joey said as he put the ring back in the bag. He heard Marik gasp, but Bakura didn't seem surprised. For a long moment, he was quiet. Then he sighed.

"It isn't anything big but, I feel…something. A pull. A small pull, mind you."

"That's better than nothing!" Marik proclaimed.

"What's it pullin' you too?' Joey asked.

"Down. But what's even stranger is that… this pull doesn't seem like it's for me. I know that seems odd... Now I get the problem Yugi had explaining earlier." Bakura said.

Joey exhaled, the walkways he found couldn't go any lower. But there was that smashed control panel below him.

"Let's hope I'm not goin' crazy. Here we go." Joey heaved himself over the railing and fell a good ten feet. He landed with another painful crash.

"Are you ok?!" Bakura yelled through the phone.

"Fine, fine. Feel anythin' different?" Joey croaked. He slowly stood up and gawked at the massive Ener-D reactor.

"Yes actually. It feels like I need to turn on something. Like a light switch or a kettle."

"Ya, dat's gonna be a problem," Joey said as he looked at the ruins of the once great reactor. He then gripped his head with a frustrated growl. "Why was I even thinkin' dis!? Goin' off of feelin's and half made plans! How did we ever save the world in the past?!"

"What's wrong?" Bakura asked.

"I am not gonna turn on the original Ener-D reactor!"

"The original what!?' Kaiba's voice shot through the phone. Joey stared confused at his screen until Bakura sent him a video call request. Joey accepted and a holographic picture of Bakura and Marik sitting in a mess of book by a laptop came into view. On the laptop was a blurry picture of Kaiba.

"We did say we were coordinating with everyone." Marik nervously smiled.

"WHY ARE YOU AT THE OLD ENER-D REATOR?!" Kaiba roared. Joey cringed away from the phone. "I TOLD YOU TO STAY AWAY FROM IT AT ALL COSTS!"

"Atem was heading here to finish whatever ceremony he had to do. On the way, he got possessed and now we have to finish the ceremony… I think? I just know the new evil Atem was tryin' to stop the ceremony from happenin' by destroyin' dese." Joey said as he pulled the Millennium Items into view. The group fell silent as they stared at the glittering pieces of their past.

"…And that involves turning on the reactor that destroyed everything?!" Kaiba barked after collecting himself.

"Hey! It was Bakura's weird feelin's plan. And listenin' to him was the best I could think of." Joey groaned as he leaned against the side of the broken panel. "I just- I don't know. I'm tired, hurt, and Yugi's shadow duelin' with someone up dere dat looks like Atem but I'm pretty sure is not. I'm not exactly in the right mindset."

"Shadow dueling?!" Everyone gasped.

"Where are Atem and Yugi?" Kaiba asked. Joey was about to point the phone at the battle raging above him when a warbled voice came from the control panel.

"Hello, Mr. Kaiba." Joey froze. He slowly looked down to see that his elbow had been leaning on a still somewhat intact button. "This unit is currently sleeping. Working at 0.0001% power. What would you like to do, sir?"

Joey turned back to the phone. Thanks to the multiple levels of cameras, Kaiba's face was completely pixelated. Joey couldn't see a single detail on him. He could tell though by Marik's and Bakura's faces, it wasn't good.

"Do you still have that feeling of yours Bakura?" Kaiba said. Bakura jumped and turned to the laptop.

"Pardon?"

"Do, You. Still. Have. That. Feeling. From. The. Afterlife?" Seto said condescendingly slow.

"Err, it's definitely a feeling. I don't know if it comes from the afterlife, however. But now that I focus on it, it is one of the strongest feelings I've ever had. It's like someone whispering to me. They're repeating the turn it on feeling and now… One, I think? Yes, they are repeating one." That did not reassure anyone. For a few moments longer everyone remained silent. Then Seto sighed.

"Well, if another Zero Reverse happens, you'll be happy to know it was because Bakura heard whispering in his head." Kaiba said. "Ener-D boot up to one percent. Password: Kisara."

"Wait! Shouldn't we talk about this-!" Joey yelped but it was cut off by the roar of the machine.

Sparks went off around Joey as what was left of reactor sprang to life. He turned to see mechanics in the large tube start to move. Inside were massive metal arms the size of cars that seemed to rotate around one axis. At first he was worried those would start moving, but instead smaller arms below them began to turn. As they got faster and faster, the ends of the arms began to glow in a rainbow of colors. The rubble around Joey began to violently shake as the spinning got so quick that all he could see was multicolored light. Debris started to rain down as he ran for safety.

* * *

Up top both Yugi and Atem had to grab onto their guard rails as their walkway began to vibrate.

"He wouldn't!" Atem yelled. Yugi looked to where Atem was staring. Below them, a multitude of colors radiated from a large glass tube.

"What did you do Joey?" Yugi whispered. The shaking got more intense, enough for Yugi's walkway to break off its support and start falling.

"Yugi!" Atem cried. Yugi jumped away from the walkway but there was nowhere for him to go. As he began to fall, the green and white swordsmen Pokémon called Gallade that Yugi had summoned jumped to his aid. It grabbed him and threw him towards Atem's walkway. Atem reached out and grabbed Yugi's arms, barely catching him in time. Yugi quickly scrambled up the guardrail and held onto Atem as the trembling was reaching its panicle. The Gallade came to the two and grabbed onto both of them. Gandora and Dark Magician Girl right by his side.

* * *

"Dis was probably our worst idea ever!" Joey yelled into the phone. He was curled up with the backpack of items, his back to the reactor, praying to not be blown away. The metal monstrosity continued to roar as it grew in speed. Joey could tell voices were coming from his phone but the noise was too much to hear over. What was worst was there was an intense heat coming from the reactor as it reached its pinnacle. Joey prepared for it to explode, covering his head. Then it all stopped.

"1% test complete. Ener-D reactor working at 0.2% efficiency. Needs 13,785,834 checks and fixes. I apologize, Mr. Kaiba, the reactor is not ready. Please review with the engineers." A small electronic voice sang out. Joey slowly opened his eyes and looked around.

"Nope, you're not dead yet honey." Came a female voice. Joey's entire body froze, yet he felt like every one of his cells did a backflip. He slowly turned to see a group of five people silhouetted by the slowing colors of the reactor. The female that spoke sauntered up to Joey, bent down and kissed him full on the lips. Joey was still frozen but found himself quickly unfreezing as the women pulled away and rested her forehead against his.

"I've missed you, love." Mai smiled.


	39. The Three Egyption Legendaries

When the shaking stopped Atem and Yugi remained still, then Yugi quickly pulled away. He held tight to the Millennium Puzzle and backed up. Somewhere in Atem's head, he felt guilty for causing Yugi to look at him with so much distrust. It was a quick pain, however. He returned to his self-assured stance and was about to order his metal soldier known as Bisharp to attack when he stopped. Gallade was to the right, he was about a foot taller than Yugi with two blades coming out of his elbows. The Pokémon was looking over Yugi to make sure he was not hurt, another action not programmed. This Pokémon's eyes were also the same color blue as earlier. Atem was about to shrug it off as Dark Magician Girl taking over the holographic creature when he saw her floating to the left of Yugi.

"Are you alright?" Gallade said in a deep voice. This voice brought back a barrage of memories to Atem.

"Mahad." Atem breathed. Yugi just about jumped away from the tall Pokémon in surprise when he heard his name.

"Madah?! As in your- But how did-" Yugi stuttered. After a few more unintelligible gasps, Yugi slapped the side of his head to get himself under control.

"We have much to explain but first, I am simply glad we got in contact with you. Trying to talk to you through the Higher Ups' forgotten connection was getting tiring."

"Forgotten what now?" Dark Magician Girl asked. Mahad for a moment was surprised by Dark Magician Girl's presence, but he quickly collected himself.

"I believe you called them your 'epiphanies'?" Mahad said.

"That was you?!" Atem yelled out, finally able to find his voice. As Atem spoke he took a step towards the group. Mahad immediately shot his sharped blade out and held it at the Dark Signer's throat. Atem instantly stepped away with no physical damage. That did not mean he was unhurt. He clutched at his throat and found his voice to be gone again. What replaced it was a million thoughts, both his and the Immortal's. His most loyal friend just attacked him, that was something the Immortal could not explain away.

As Atem stumbled back, Mahad turned to Yugi. "Some of the epiphanies were me, especially the knowledge of shadow magic. More often than not, however, it was your friends or even the Higher Ups themselves." Mahad said as he pointed at Yugi's cellphone.

Just then it began to ring with a video call. Yugi titled his head as he looked at the phone, it was Joey. He then glanced back to Atem. The Dark Signer was leaning against the guardrail while clutching his head. Yugi was about to ignore the call and run to Atem's side when Mahad put out his arm. Yugi looked up to him with gritted teeth, but his outrage quickly disappeared when he saw Mahad's eyes. It hurt him just as much as it hurt Yugi to not be by Atem's side. Yugi stepped back and answered the call.

The image showed six people standing by the reactor. Joey was leaning on Mai with Serenity, Tristan, Duke, and Mana by their side. Yugi's eyes welled with tears while his lips formed a smile.

"Ho-how?!"

"When you were sent back, those friends of yours fought tooth and nail to make sure you had the best chance. Because of them, the Higher Ups gave you renewed strength and health. They also gave you secret memories to help with Atem's mission." Mahad explained.

"The things I remembered in the backyard before Gandora's city tour!" Yugi yelped.

"Yep, that was on purpose." Yugi turned to the phone when Duke spoke. "What wasn't on purpose was what happened next."

"You used shadow magic, high-level shadow magic. This you actually drew from the Higher Ups' endless knowledge without them realizing. All using the connection they made for the secret memories." Tristan chuckled. This made Yugi's smile lessen a little.

"I didn't mean to do that. I didn't even know I could do that."

"We guessed so. You were simply in such a life and death situation that you naturally grabbed the knowledge to protect your friend. The Higher Ups almost pulled you back to the afterlife for that." Serenity said. Yugi quickly glared at Gandora who nervously shrug.

"I said I was sorry." She said. Yugi gave an exasperated sigh and turned back to the phone. At that moment, Mahad walked closer to Yugi so he was in the frame of the phone.

"Hey! Looking good Master!" Mana yelled as she waved wildly. Mahad did a small bow then continued to explain.

"You see Yugi, when the Higher Ups gave you those gifts, they left a small connection between you and the afterlife and themselves. Usually, they could easily close up such a linking, but then the Earthbound Immortals began their direct attacks. I am sure you figured out how weak they became when you contacted me in the afterlife." Mahad said. Yugi nodded.

"It was about a week after Atem came to the afterlife that our little group found out about the connection… And decided to abuse the heck out of it to get you the information you needed to stop the Earthbound Immortals." Mai smiled.

"Which is very illegal so don't tell the Higher Ups." Mana laughed as she pulled a finger in front of her mouth.

"I am sure they already knew. There were many times that none of us used the connection, yet Yugi remembered something." Mahad pointed out.

Yugi kept staring at the phone like it would flick off at any moment and he would wake up. Eventually, he spoke.

"Thank you all. I don't know how I would have done this without you, and I'm glad to know where those memories were coming from but…. HOW ARE YOU HERE?!" Yugi yelled.

"I would like to know that too," Atem said as he got to his feet. He was quivering, even flinching every few seconds. His gaze locked straight on Yugi.

"Atem…" Yugi exhaled.

"What did they have to sacrifice to get here?" Atem asked, his voice low.

"Nothing. Sure, Yugi got too distracted to hear us so we had to go through Bakura. That took a little extra energy. And going through the Ener-D's hole in the barrier hurt a bit, but we are here on the Crimson Dragon's wishes. The dragon wanted us to-" Mana said before she was cut off by Atem.

"Of course, the six priests to do the ceremony." He said while clenching his fists. "We will have much to talk about, but I have a shadow game to finish. I don't want to hurt you Mahad so please, listen to your pharaoh's orders. Get out of the way!" Atem commanded.

Mahad stood firm and once again pulled out his bladed arms. Yugi quickly wiped away his tears. He looked from the phone to Atem, his mouth pulling tight. While the Pharaoh looked like the picture of calm, Yugi knew better. They could never hide anything from each other, even in separate bodies. The Dark Signer was losing his confidences.

Yugi strode past Mahad. A glance was all he needed to give the protector to stop him from objecting. He stood right in front of the Dark Signer, the two looking to the other for the first move. Then Yugi sighed.

"You have this all wrong Atem." He said. Atem raised an eyebrow, trying to find Yugi's hidden plan or motive.

"Finally accepting that I am Atem?" He asked.

"You are Atem. A very confused and scared Atem that has been warped by the Immortals." Yugi said. This got Atem to clench his fist, his Bisharp preparing its own arm blades. Yugi then continued.

"Atem… Yes, what happened to us as kids was wrong and I can't vouch for what happened in your Egyptian childhood but… No matter what, even if there was never any prophecy or world ending villains, we would have still done what we did. It was never because we were forced to or dragged in, it was because we wanted to." Yugi said while clinging to the Millennium Puzzle in one hand and his phone in the other.

"You wanted to constantly nearly die?" Atem barked. Yugi slowly shook his head.

"No, no one wants constant danger and I can understand your anger. It's nothing but justified. I can even remember back to a time when I felt similar feelings. The Kaiba Land Championship being a big example. Do you know what I realized that got me out of that funk? Even if I hadn't been called to action by this golden pyramid here," Yugi said while lifting up the Millennium Puzzle. "I would have still thrown myself in the way of bullies. I still would have tried to stopped corrupted people like Pegasus and Dartz. Sure, I might not have been as effective if I didn't have a powerful alter ego, but I would have still done it. I believe you are the same way. That's why we were chosen to do those things in the first place. In Slifer's name, all our friend would have tried to help with or without destiny's aid."

Yugi then lifted up the phone to let Atem see their friends. They all yelled some semblance of yes, each talking over the other about stories they remembered. For a moment Atem could only stare at them. He started to twitch again and Bisharp began to do the same.

"No!" Atem backed up and pointed to Yugi. His Bisharp followed his unspoken order and launched itself at Yugi with blades out. Mahad quickly jumped between the two and held the Pokémon at bay.

"Yugi, so what if I would have done it? I know that! That's what was planned for monsters like me since the beginning. It's all I was for. By helping the Immortals win I can end it all! We finally don't have to choose to be heroes!" Atem yelled with none of his confident, authoritative voice. This sounded more like a plea.

Yugi could tell Atem was unstable. He hesitated for a moment, then took another step towards the Dark Signer. The teen flinched but he couldn't back up anymore. Yugi then leaned down so he could look him in the face.

"You are not just the Nameless Pharaoh. You were never just meant to fight monsters. If that was the case why did people like your father sacrifice themselves so you could have a semblance of a life? No, you are also Atem Muto; the teen that loves games for the sake of playing games, the teacher that put aside time to teach a ten-year-old Japanese when he had a million other worries, the dork that sings alone in the kitchen because singing in front of others would hurt his pride. You are more than Atem, you're also Yami. My childhood protector and brother, the soul that I would have never met if it wasn't for these 'villains'." Yugi said.

Atem's twitching became full-on trembling as Yugi spoke. When Yugi ended, for a split second he saw Atem's eyes return to white. Yugi was about to continue speaking when the Dark Signer suddenly burst out screaming. Yugi felt Mahad wrap his arm around his waist and jumped away with him. Yugi tried to fight but then he saw dark violet energy surround Atem. The teen was flashing between his Dark Signer form and his normal body. Yugi felt his heart drop as he remembered Atem doing this back in the hospital the two weeks he was knocked out.

Then Atem reopened his eyes, the violet energy burst out in a wave that made Yugi shield his face for a moment. When Yugi could refocus on Atem's eyes, he found them to be completely purple. A twisted smile soon grew from the shadows of Atem's face. It was filled with none of his kingly grace, it wasn't even as calculating and insane as the spirit's old smile. This was a different person, a different grin.

"Nice try, but this duel is not done yet. Now when you lose you will not just be destroying the puzzle." Atem voice sounded echoed like another much deeper voice was speaking in unison. Yugi could only stare in horror as this thing stumbled back towards to center of the walkway.

"Bisharp, Night Slash!" The Immortal commanded. Its metal Pokémon jumped right back into action. Mahad left Yugi on the walkway and blocked the attack. The clashing blades hurt both Mahad and Yugi, with the magician even grunting in pain. The Immortal didn't care, it seemed to enjoy it.

"Dat's definitely not Atem anymore." Joey's voice came over the phone. Yugi nodded.

"Mahad use Focus Blast!" Yugi yelled. Mahad did as asked and summoned his fighting energy in one fixated flare. He shot it at Bisharp and the Pokémon was knocked out. As the smoke cleared the two looked to Atem for any change. The only difference was that it was laughing.

"I am done playing around with this pharaoh's weak game. The first step is to destroy the intrusive magician." The Immortal announced as it pointed at Mahad. It grabbed Atem's last Poké Ball and threw it onto the field. When the ball's light disappeared, there sat a creature Yugi had never seen before. It didn't even look like a Pokémon. It was more like a black, square stone with thick purple lines curving throughout it. Then the stone began to pulse, stretching out and in like a beating heart.

"Usually I need many souls to summon this last beast, but since you choose a different game, a body is not quite ready. So, I'll be content with the few souls here." The Immortal said.

The heart expanded with a thunk and started sucking in everything around it. Everything but the shadow duelist.

"Gandora! Dark Magician Girl!" Yugi screamed as he saw his partners start to turn the same purple color of the stone. They only had a moment to look at Yugi pleadingly before they were sucked into the heart. Over the phone, Yugi heard screaming. He looked down to see the same thing almost happen to the group down below. It was Mana summoning a shield that stopping them from being pulled up.

When no other souls were taken the Immortal shrugged, its smile never dying. "Come out, Yveltal!"

The heart then began to glow as it's purple light enveloped it. Slowly, limbs started to appear through the light. Two large wings that ended in pitch black claws, bird talons equally as dark and sharp, and finally the head with piercing blue eyes and cutting beak. Yveltal, Yugi's legendary of destruction. Its shadow loomed over the group as it was larger than even the reactor's tube. The Pokémon was originally red, the way Yugi designed it, but as it floated there it turned the same violet hue as the Earthbound Immortal Wiraqocha Rasca.

"Did you really have to make your legendary of destruction a condor?" Mahad sighed.

"I wasn't planning on it being used by an evil bird demon!" Yugi shot back.

"Oblivion Wing." The Immortal ordered. Yugi yelled for Mahad to dodge, but the bird was faster. It shot a devastating red and black beam from the beast's very core. Sucking the life out of everything in its way. Gallade was knocked out and Yugi sent flying. He landed painfully on his side. It took all of Yugi's strength to not fall into unconsciousness. He reached down and felt blood pouring from a deep wound. He quickly held his hand to it and got up. Ignoring his pain, he scanned around, worried for Mahad's fate. The spirit of the magician then appeared next to Yugi, his body slowly appearing afterward.

"You're ok." Yugi croaked. Mahad studied Yugi closely. His eyes filled with nothing but pity.

"I'm sorry, he's gone. We have to start the ceremony, it's the only way to end this." Mahad said.

"You say that like it's easy." The Immortal cut in. The two turned to see the Eye of Wadjet appear on its forehead. The eye's golden power seemed to combine with the violet force already radiating. The snow once again blew hard and fast as the Immortal lifted up its hand. Above they could hear cawing. What looked like the shadows of thousands of large birds descended, with no bodies following. They covered what little glow came from the city, letting the red emergency lamps be the only source of light. Some birds went right for Mahad while others continued down.

"Mahad!" Yugi yelled. The magician summoned his own shield and tried to smile at Yugi.

"Do not worry about us, we will get this ceremony going. You just focus on the Immortal and finishing this." He said as he shot a blast off, destroying a dozen of the birds. He then jumped down to the lower walkways.

Yugi turned his attention back to the Immortal. His mouth turned down into a grimace as he began to choose his next Pokémon. It was then he realized that he no longer had his phone in his hand. He glanced down to see it had fallen to a lower platform. Before Yugi could come up with a plan to get it back, a shadow bird grabbed it and flew away.

"I will admit, I usually cannot summon these. It takes an Immortal's power plus another's equally as strong. In the afterlife, us Immortals could band together to get them, but here in the living world? It is only thanks to this pharaoh's own innate magic I can do this. That is why I am excited about this duel." It said. Yugi snapped his attention back to the thing.

"What do you mean?" Yugi growled.

"You aren't just fighting to make sure that puzzle is not broken. When you lose you are going to become a Dark Signer too. The question is should I keep you to myself or let one of the others have you…" The thing smiled at Yugi's horrified face. "With that connection to the Higher Ups, you would make a great Dark Signer. You would be rivaled by no other, not even by the Pharaoh."

Yugi's knuckles turned white as the thing spoke. To use Atem's body and to speak of his in such a way angered him more than any villain before.

"You want to play with legendaries? Here's one of my favorites!" Yugi yelled as he chucked out his next Poké Ball. With a loud roar out came a long, green dragon that flew and looped in the air. It was half Yveltal's size.

"Welcome the sky-high dragon, Rayquaza!"

* * *

Down below, Joey was leaning heavily on Mai as the others were holding onto the phone. After Yveltal was summoned he found his injuries catching up to him. He had nearly collapsed but Mai held onto him tight, bringing him to a small alcove made by the broken machinery and sitting him down. The others then began rummaging around in the backpack. Joey didn't care at the moment what they were doing, his eyes were only on Mai.

"Are you guys back, as in for good?" Joey asked as he traced her face with the back of his hand. Mai leaned into his touch, but there was a sad smile on her face.

"No, we are only here to help. The hole you made by reactivating the generator is only temporary. We will be going back with Atem." She sighed.

"No." Joey breathed, pulling her into a desperate hug. "I-we just got you. You guys left so suddenly, now you're already…?"

"Hey, wasn't it you that told the pharaoh when he was leaving that he wasn't going anywhere, that the memories he gave each of us will remain in our hearts?" Tristan yelled over.

"Don't go usin' one of the few moments I said somethin' smart against me like dat!" Joey snapped back. "I just want…"

"More time? We all do." Serenity said with a sad shake of her head. "We can't focus on that now. We need to get the ceremony going before things get worse!"

"By the fact, Yugi's phone has disconnected, I think we already have trouble," Duke said as he handed Joey back his phone. Joey looked over the cell, then tried to call Bakura or any of the others. Nothing was working.

"You don't just have to think about it, we have trouble!" Mana yelled as she pointed up at the encroaching mass of shadows. While Joey had never seen such creatures before, the others had. It was a version of the shadow creatures they had all been fighting in the afterlife.

"Remember! These things go down easy, there is just a lot of them!" Tristan yelled as he ran to the backpack and grabbed it before the birds could.

The group scattered, even Mai got Joey to stand as they moved to the more covered sets of stairs. Everyone was on different sides of the reactor, but they were all moving up.

"Where are we going?" Joey asked. Mai didn't answer and continued to run Joey up with Mana by their side. The magician used her magic to destroy the birds as Joey and Mai focused on moving. The birds were indeed easy to beat, but they attacked in swarms. While Mana was doing her best many still got around her. The few that broke through bunched together and attacked her open back. With a yelp, she fell forwards into the open air. Before she fell too far, she quickly turned around and gripped the edge of what used to be a walkway.

"Mana! Here, hold this." Mai then pushed something small and round into Joey's good hand and ran to the mage's side.

Joey leaned against the wall to try and hide, but the birds were heading right for him. Suddenly, it felt like his arm was being yanked, or more specifically the item in his hand was. Joey refused to let go of it and so he was thrown in every direction as beams of blue light shot out of his hand. When the light hit the shadows, they evaporated with loud squawks. Joey stood astounded as the looked at the newly emptied corridor.

"What?" Joey looked down at his hand to see a golden eye stare back at him. "Was this Pegasus's eye?!"

"It is actually the Millennium Eye, but yes, it was once Pegasus's eye. Don't drop it now!" Mai said as she came back with Mana by her side. She continued to push Joey up despite his flurry of questions. Once they got to the next level, they saw Tristan across the walkways bashing some shadow birds with the Millennium Rod.

"Tristan! The eye chose someone! Has the rod reacted to you yet?!" Mana called. Tristan then spun around and used the rod to control a flock of the birds and throw them into a wall.

"Yep, but it feels so weird to use it like this," Tristan yelled.

"I know!" The group looked up one level to see Duke fighting with the Millennium Key. "It's hard to explain, but it feels like this thing is only helping me grudgingly!" He called.

"The Crimson Dragon did say they'd only choose us for a little while. Usually, they would never let people like us use their power." Mai yelled back. Tristan fought through his group of shadows and got as close as he could to Joey and the girls.

"The eye chose Joey? The items must be getting desperate." Tristan laughed as he threw the backpack down to Mana who used magic to catch it. She quickly opened it to find the Millennium Scale and Ring.

"Serenity has the necklace and its working great for her," Tristan said as he looked up to a higher level to see Serenity run by. She had her hands around the necklace and was destroying scores of birds. Her excited giggles could be heard all the way down. "Ah, I love that woman." Tristen smiled before running along.

"Try this one Mai," Mana said as the group began to run again. She got out the scale and threw it to Mai. She gracefully caught it and immediately used it to catch a swarm of the shadows. They were frozen in midair until one side of the scale fell, the swarm was then completely destroyed.

"It likes me." Mai grinned. The group then continued up, fighting the entire time. As they trudged through the shadows, Joey noticed that they weren't just randomly going up. The two girls were choosing the stairs and walkways they went on.

"Where are we going?" He asked again.

"To do this ceremony we need to be in specific places. We need to make a complete circle around the Millennium Puzzle. We're guessing we can't get close to that shadow game, so we are trying to coordinate so we are all on the same lower level. Thankfully this reactor makes a perfect circle in the ground." Mai explained as they passed Duke who had found his place and was preparing himself.

"What about that?" Joey asked, pointing at the Millennium Ring. Mana pulled it out of the bag and held it close to her chest.

"This item was originally my master's. Once he gets down here, he'll wield it." Mana explained.

After a few more walkways Mai stopped Joey as Mana continued on. They were at the entrance of another walkway with Serenity directly across the chasm.

"I have to leave you here," Mai said. Joey immediately clung to her tighter. "It'll only be for a bit. If this works, we'll be back together in under a minute."

"And if not?" Joey whispered. He let go of her and leaned back on the wall, but his frown stayed. "Even if dis does work, you're goin' back."

"Joey, I." Mai couldn't find her words and simply shook her head. As the rest of the reactor was in chaos the couple remained silently together for a little while longer.

"…I didn't take your partin' well. I'll be the first to admit dat. I now have tools to help me heal and I do believe it's gonna get better, it's just… I think what hurt me the most was dat I didn't even get a goodbye. I at least got that with people like my grandpa or Atem. Literally, the last thing I told you was to go pick up milk."

"Joey, this isn't goodbye."

"I know, it seems like it never is with us. But for my sake…" Joey trailed off. Mai nodded and stood a little straighter.

"You know I hate goodbyes but, for you. Bye, you big goofball. See you soon." Mai smiled. Joey grinned back

"Bye Mai. See you around." The lightest Joey had felt this last year, was when he watched Mai turn away. It was then more than any other time, he knew things would be fine. He took his stance by the walkway and looked out at his sister.

"Hey sis! How does dis ceremony work exactly?"

* * *

The battle between the two legendaries did not go well. As Mahad watched he could have sworn there were many times that Rayquaza should have knocked Yveltal out, yet the bird always seemed to come back. As he fought through the shadows he turned around once more to make sure Yugi was alright. The mortal was taking a great deal of damage since both Pokémon were gods of a sort. Though Yugi stood through it with as much bravery as he could, his body was giving out. Mahad could only stiffen his jaw and return to finding the other, just in time to run into right in Mana.

"Master!" Mana quickly straightened her hat and then held out the Millennium Ring. "Here."

Mahad's eye jumped to every part of the golden ring. Many memories came flooding back just by looking at the cursed item. He hands reached out for a brief moment, then he let them fall back to his side.

"I cannot." Mahad sighed.

"What do you mean?!" she asked.

"The ring will not accept me."

"But you are one of its original wielders! It has to accept you."

"I failed it. I let it fall into the Bandit King's hands in both the past and the dark RPG. It is still an incredibly evil item, much more than we even remember. With my history, I would not be able to wield it." Mahad said. Fear spread across Mana's face as she looked down at the ring.

"Then who can?!" She squeaked. Mahad turned her towards the walkway. There whoever had to wield the ring would stand to finish the mile-wide circle.

"The one who can use such an item has to have an iron will. They cannot falter in front of the Ring's overwhelming force." He then began to lead Mana to the spot.

"Not me! I'm nowhere near strong enough for that!" Mana argued. She still followed her old master's guidance however and stood in place, ring in hand.

As soon as Mana came into view the shadow birds drove for her. She started to reach down for her magic staff but Mahad held it back. He then smiled, the same smile he did when she used to mess up a spell or cause a mess with the young pharaoh. This reassured her more than any words. She straightened up and held the ring out. Immediately she felt a push back. It felt like the ring itself was trying to control her. She remained firm however, and soon another power came from the ring, a bright red light that decimated any shadows.

"I did it!" Mana yelped, Mahad nodded knowingly.

As Mana held the ring up, a light emanated from it. This light spread out to the others standing at their points on the circle. This line of light touched each Millennium Item and made another six glowing lines come out of each. This continued to connect to the others. If a shadow even came close to the golden radiance, it was evaporated. For the first time in years, the reactor was illuminated with golden light, even the falling snow couldn't last long with the warmth.

Eventually, every item was connected. One final beam shot out of each item, meeting in the middle and shooting up. Yugi looked down in surprise to see the Millennium Puzzle start to gleam and shake.

"It's working!" Mana yelled. "The ceremony is going to work!" The others began to smile with Tristan even cheering. Mahad remained stone-faced as he looked up.

"This is as far as we go," he said in a low tone.

"What do you mean?" Mana asked.

"If the ceremony is to lock away the other Immortals, it needs one innocent soul to trap away along with it. Just as it had to work back with Zorc. This soul has to freely agree..."

* * *

"Nope." The Immortal in Atem's body said. The Millennium Puzzle's light immediately dampened.

"What just happened?" Yugi asked, reaching down to feel the puzzle.

"The Crimson Dragon's original plan was to have Atem's soul locked away in the afterlife, with our souls in the Netherworld for seventeen years. Now however, I have a say in the matter and I say no." Yugi felt all the power building up in the puzzle start to disappear. They needed a soul to finish the ceremony…

"And before you go trying to be a hero. Remember that this ceremony only works on Earthbound Immortals that do not have Dark Signers yet. Since Atem is a full Dark Signer now, he will be left on the surface as you are locked away in the afterlife. Sure, we will be weak, my brother Uru and I probably couldn't do anything dramatic until the seventeen years are up, but I will still be in Atem's body." the Immortal said with a satisfied grin.

Yugi's gritted teeth became full-on bared teeth as the Immortal laughed. Yugi looked to his Rayquaza and was about to order another attack when his opponent cut in again.

"Remember, if you defeat me in this battle I will go back to the Netherworld. I'll just be taking Atem's soul with me."

This froze Yugi in place. He had heard when Atem explained this earlier, he just hadn't had the time to fully process what the consequences were. Now it was spelled out for him. He couldn't win without losing Atem. He looked down to his friends holding up the Millennium Items. They seemed to be tiring with every second they kept up this ceremony. Joey looking the worst out of the group. Yugi then glanced to his handheld. There was a surrender button but he quickly waved that thought away. That would not work this time.

'Maybe it would be best if I was sent to the afterlife.' Yugi thought. 'Once the seventeen years were up the real Signers could fight… No, they would defeat Atem without a second thought or worse, be defeated by Atem.' Yugi silently growled.

Yugi was feeling nearly defeated. He once again let his hand rest on the Millennium Puzzle. It was still slightly vibrating but even that was slowly disappearing. Yugi remembered back to a time when the puzzle would shake every time he switched places with Atem. That led to other memories with the pharaoh, three cards stood out in Yugi's mind. The newly empowered Millennium Puzzle heard, and responded to its old wielder's unspoken wish.

A sky-splitting roar shook the reactor. It was powerful enough to cause Yugi to lose his footing. Not that it would have been hard with how weak he was becoming. He curled up and covered his ears until the din stopped. He slowly looked back up to see his Rayquaza was the origin of the noise. It was impatiently looping around in the sky. While the flying was normal, the roar sounded nothing like Yugi programmed. Yet, it sounded so familiar. Yugi slowly rose to his feet, staring at his Rayquaza the entire time.

The Immortal noticed Yugi's sudden interest in his Pokémon and looked to the sky dragon too. It immediately noticed the erratic movements the green dragon was making.

"What spirit has joined us now?" The thing chuckled, then it felt it. A raw power only equaled by itself in its true form. The green dragon seemed to slowly turn a bright red, the outlines of a doubled jaw coming into view.

"Slifer." Yugi breathed. Realizing that in front of him was the spirit of an Egyptian God card. Soon the other below too noticed and gasped. Mahad going as far as to bow.

The Immortal clenched its fists with a snarl. "Go Yveltal! Destroy this impostor once and for all!" it cried. Yveltal roared its own counter, but it was not nearly as loud or as regal as Slifer's.

As the bird fired out another Oblivion Wing, Yugi felt movement from his handheld. He saw two more Poké Balls appear on the screen. Willing to accept anything at that point, Yugi brought the balls into virtual reality and threw them. With two pops the seemed to radiate around the reactor, two more legendaries appeared and blocked the attack. Flying out came a red and gold sun bird called Ho-Oh and a blue metal man the size of a mountain called Regigigas.

"The shadow game should not allow this-" The Immortal tried to counter but then it looked at Atem's own handheld. The two other Pokémon weren't being registered. As far as their shadow duel was concerned, there was only one Pokémon out on Yugi's side.

Even though these new Pokémon where clearly Yugi's own creations, they radiated a power Yugi could never recreate. The power of the gods and these gods were ticked off.

"I guess they didn't like their favorite pharaoh being forcibly converted into a Dark Signer." Joey chuckled.

As Yugi gawked at the three beings he felt absolutely overwhelmed. He had never been in control of so much power at once.

'How did Atem do it all those times?' Yugi thought to himself as he had to lean on the handrails. He found himself clutching the Millennium Puzzle close for support, something to ground him in all the confusion. Slifer looked back to Yugi, they made eye contact and suddenly Yugi flashed through all his proudest memories. He nodded back to Slifer, then raised his hand to point at Yveltal.

"Make sure that is knocked out. I will deal with the Dark Signer." Yugi said in a voice not far off from Atem's own pharaoh voice. The three gods shrieked their battle cries and flew towards the doomed bird, Slifer leading the way. Yveltal backed up and started flying high, pulling the fight away from the two humans.

As the gods distracted the Immortal, Yugi took a step towards Atem. The old King of Games was barely standing; blood was dripping down his side and he found one of his legs refused to hold his weight. Yet, he kept moving forward. When the Dark Signer saw the limping man come its way, it stumbled back. It was in much better shape than the mortal. Yet, seeing the fire in the man's eyes, a fire to equal the three Egyptian God cards, scared the thing more than any healthy warrior.

"Atem… I know you're in there." Yugi began. The Immortal bared its teeth but continued to back up. "I know you're tired and so am I. It's been a long journey for both of us, but it's something I would take again and again." The gods' fight caused both to feel immense pain thanks to the shadow duel. It was enough for the Immortal to fall to its knees. Yugi almost fell in unison, but the same thing that had saved him in the past was holding him up now. It was friendship that somehow allowed this odd adventure to start and that was how it was going to end.

"I cannot promise that we will never be called to action again, I cannot even defend it and call it right. But I can promise is that I will be always with you every time a villain does come. While yes, our lives were never normal, I think we are much better people because of our war against darkness. I hope through all your anger and pain you can see that for yourself too." Yugi breathed. He finally collapsed in front of the teen and slowly brought himself to his knees. He looked directly at the boy in front of him. He was once again flashing between purple and white. The Immortal was no longer able to focus on controlling Atem with the Egyptian gods attacking.

"You are more than just the pharaoh made to fight monsters. You are the spirit I've loved since the day I rebuilt this puzzle. So please, Yami!" Yugi pleaded.

To Yami it felt like he had finally broken out of a suffocating tomb. It wounded and cut deep, but he had made it through. Yami was the one thing the Condor could never own. His chosen name. It was not connected with Egyptian prophecies or evil spirits. Yami was associated with lazy days trying to get Yugi's homework done, beating his friends at arcade games, and fighting to be Kaiba's best rival. It was his and only his name. This allowed him to do what no other past Dark Signer could ever do, break free. But it was for only a moment. Yami soon felt the tendrils of the Immortal clawing its way back into his mind. He had to work fast.

In front of him was the smiling Yugi and his handheld. Everything seemed sluggish and faded, even the battle of the gods above him was a distant annoyance. The only bright source was the glowing puzzle. Seeing Yugi sitting in front of him, bleeding but still happy to have him, gave Yami the strength he needed.

Yami reached out to the handheld and surrendered. "Goodbye."

Things suddenly picked up to lightning fast speeds. Yugi couldn't stop Yami from choosing to surrender and everything was thrown into chaos. The holograms with the gods' spirits began to twist and glitch. The lights connected to the Millennium Items began to waver, pulling their wielders with them. The most horrifying of all to Yugi was that Yami fell limply into him, his body as cold as the falling snow around them. Slowly, his body began to disappear, right in Yugi's arms.

"No!" Yugi cried with all the energy he had left. He pulled power and magic from places he didn't even know he had. He was not losing him again, yet he knew it would not be enough.

Yami lost and so he was being dragged into the Netherworld. The punishment for all Dark Signers. There was nothing Yugi could do to change the will of the gods. Then he felt it. A much stronger power, something he only felt in his dreams and the occasional epiphany. It seemed to fill every part, every cell with new life. He didn't care where it came from. Using this new strength, he took off the Millennium Puzzle from around his neck. He reached forward with shaking hands and pulled out the central piece of the puzzle. The teen's body let out one last gasp and disintegrated. There were two beings left in place of the body, a strong golden soul and a withering violet one. They both went tangled into the puzzle. With the last of his strength, Yugi completed the puzzle once again. It was a move of pure Power and Force. Then Yugi knew no more.

* * *

Tick, tick, tick.

Yugi remembered that sound. It was the sound of his mother's watch. He used to fall asleep in her arms as he listened to it. He hadn't thought of the thing in years yet hearing it again was more comforting than any powerful duel monster or Pokémon.

Yugi quickly sat up. He was in a small but homey room, his soul room. It was brightly lit and filled with toys and games. As he stood up, he found the walls covered in beloved memories. Looking at each allowed him to smell and feel the moment. It took some willpower, but Yugi twisted away to find his computer and favorite chair sitting by his old childhood bed. On the computer was millions of ideas for games, most Yugi knew he would never get to. He then turned to see a familiar green door. Slowly he approached it and turned its little nob. As a teen this had been made perfect for his hand, now he had grown. Though he had not been at this door in over eighteen years, he knew every bump and imperfection. Because nothing was perfect, and Yugi loved it like that.

He opened the door to see an almost endless hallway with a door across the way. However, there was one difference from his childhood. Down one side seemed to be a distant prison. Yugi had never been that way before and only recognized it by the wails and caws coming from inside its bars. Yugi couldn't help feel a little bit of pity for the creature inside. That disappeared however when the intricate, golden door across from him opened. In front of him an Egyptian teen in the old Domino High School uniform. He stood with his mouth a gap and his magenta eye locked on Yugi.

"Yami." Yugi breathed. He couldn't hold it back this time and threw himself at the teen, giving him the biggest and deepest bearhug in history. The teen gladly accepted, hugging back with what strength he could manage. Even when he didn't need air Yugi's hugs still knocked the wind out of him.

"I'm so glad you're safe. I thought I lost you for the third time." Yugi said as he hugged tighter.

Feeling the warmth surround him, even if was only in his mind, made everything real to the boy. He was free. He held tighter as tears found their way into his eyes. As a pharaoh, he had learned to never show weakness, the last time he had cried was at his father's death. He hadn't cared in the moment, but childish embarrassment soon reddened his cheeks when Yugi noticed.

"Hey, you're fine." Yugi said almost as soon as he felt the moisture on his shoulder. An immediate reaction gained from years of being a dad. The teen though pulled away quickly to try and wipe away the waterworks.

"I know I'm fine! I do not cry, this is just…" He trailed off as a gentle laugh escaped Yugi.

"You're allowed to cry. We've been through a lot today and we are about to go through a bit more." Yugi said sadly. As he looked at the spirit that had been his closest friend, he remembered how they were once again about to split. Tears soon found their way into his own eyes.

"See? Us heroes are allowed to cry." Yugi chuckled through the tears. The two were quiet, unable to find the words that could equal their feelings.

"Sorry I kept calling you Yami back there. Just nerves." Yugi whispered. It was the boy that laughed this time.

"Please! If anyone should say sorry it should be me! I am the one that…" Yugi pulled the boy into another hug to stop the incoming apologies. The boy knew his partner's feelings instantly. He simply nodded and looked at the nonexistent ground.

"If you could, please keep calling me that name. I just want to be Yami a bit longer, not the Pharaoh Atem." Yami said as he nuzzled deeper into the hug.

"Yami it is."

Together they stayed, feeling the other's warmth and emotions. They hadn't been connected like this in over eighteen years. The familiar and safe feelings of their souls being intertwined seemed to heal the day's struggles. Of course, it couldn't last. The two felt something akin to knocking on their consciousness. With a sigh, they pulled apart.

"Here we go." Yugi said with a sad smile as he stood up. He held a hand out for Yami to take and together they walked out of their soul rooms.


	40. The Last Piece of the Puzzle

"Yugi, Atem, anyone!" Mana cried

Yugi slowly blinked. The reactor was back to being only illuminated by the red lights. The holograms of the gods were gone. After a few moments of adjustment, he saw all his friends in front of him. He had been leaned up against a wall, his wounds messily bandaged with ripped coats.

"Hey, guys. I'm alive." Yugi groaned as he stretched out. Everyone let out a pent-up sigh.

"Good to see ya Yugi." Joey half-smiled as he limped up to his friend. "Can you believe who's with us now?!" He said gesturing to everyone. Mai was close to Joey, smiling her award-winning smile. Serenity was hugged up against Tristan. Duke was leaning against the guard-railing with the two magicians right next to Yugi. They were all at the control panel level of the reactor, surrounding the tube.

"Guys, I…" Yugi found tears once again filling his eyes. The others turned their gaze away as they lost their smiles. "What's wrong? Am I really not allowed to cry?"

"What? No, it's just..." Tristan began.

"We're sorry we couldn't save Atem. I don't know if you realize it yet, but Dark Signer's don't come back after losing a shadow game." Serenity tried to explain, holding back her own tears.

"He's not gone, he's right here," Yugi said as he lifted up the Millennium Puzzle. The others' brows furrowed as they looked at the puzzle.

"I understand if you need some positivity Yugi, but don't go getting our hopes up like that," Tristan said. "I understand we still have memories of him connected to that puzzle-"

"No, as in Yami's soul is really in here." Yugi cut in. Just then the floating spirit of Yami Muto appeared next to him. Both Mana and Mahad gasped, but the others couldn't see him.

"By the gods." Mahad breathed.

"Atem!" Mana cried, fully losing control of her emotions and weeping. The others worriedly looked to the two, then to Yugi.

"Here, we'll show you," Yugi said as he looked to Yami. The two nodded.

Despite the years they still knew what to do. The puzzle began to shake. Yugi lifted up his chin and air seemed to blow his coat and hair. In a second, a new soul entered Yugi's body. He slowly got to his feet and proudly stood in front of everyone, one hand in his pocket.

"Yo," Yami said. Everyone was still, then all restraint went out the window as the group mobbed him. "Whoa, hey! Yugi's body is still hurt!" he tried to yell. His words though were drowned out by the sounds of a jet engine. They all watched as what looked like a Blue-Eyes White Dragon flew over top, followed by a helicopter.

"I was wonderin' when dey would show up," Joey said as he shielded his eyes from a searchlight that illuminated the group.

"I found them!" Marik's voice could barely be heard from where the group was.

Yami started for the stairs when his splitting side and Mahad's hand stopped him. He nodded and sat back down, resting his head against the wall. The spirit of Yugi then appeared and sat right alongside him. As they waited Atem found a shard of glass beside him. Interested, he picked it up to find his reflection. For a moment he could only see Yugi's face in the glass, then the differences became clear. Even as a an adult Yami's facial features were more edged and wilder than Yugi's, and of course, some of his blonde bangs shot straight up into his darker hair. Yami found himself feeling his face and hair to make sure it was real. Just change the ethnicity and this would have been him.

"You never got to see yourself as an adult, did you?" Yugi asked. Yami slowly shook his head.

'In the afterlife, once you find your paradise you can change your appearance to whatever age you want. I never tried it since I had other things to worry about. Maybe I should when I get back.' Yami mentally said as he put down the glass shard. He then gave a sly smile to Yugi. 'I like what I see.'

"Let me be the first to suggest not choosing to be near, or over forty. It all goes downhill from there. And this is coming from someone who aged amazingly well." Yugi chuckled.

* * *

They all continued to wait, no one truly talking as the others up top slowly picked their way down. The only true chatterers were Joey and Serenity as they laughed and teased each other, each in the arms of their beloved. Yugi soon felt the presences of other spirits. He turned to see Gandora and Dark Magician Girl flying towards him. The two happily tackled him in his incorporeal form as Yami silently chuckled.

"As soon as that condor was defeated, we reappeared!" Gandora said as she just about strangled Yugi. As Dark Magician Girl floated excitedly around, Mana found her eyes drawn to the duel spirit. She slowly got to her feet and managed to get Dark Magician Girl's attention.

"Hey, I don't know if you remember me but, we used to be partners?" Mana tried. It took Dark Magician Girl a moment, but once she recognized the Egyptian her eyes lit up.

"Oh of course! You were the first person to bring me into this dimension. I could never forget you!" The two then began chit-chatting like old college roommates. This immediately got Gandora's attention. She roughly dropped Yugi and joined the girl's chatter.

"Heh, what loyal spirits." Yugi joked as he made his way back over to Yami. Yami smiled and then turned as the first of the rescue party made their way down.

It was Marik that dropped first, followed by Kaiba. They looked over the group in stunned awe. Kaiba's eyes widening when he saw Mahad and Mana. The others soon followed, Bakura, Téa, Rebecca, and Mokuba.

All found words to be useless here. In a moment both groups ran at each other, hugging and demanding explanations. Yami did his best to stay in the shadows as everyone greeted their old friends. Mai happily grabbed Serenity and Téa in a big sisterly hug. Bakura and Marik found themselves talking to the magicians as they connected over similar interests. Rebecca just about jumped into Duke's arms as Mokuba and Seto grilled Tristan for explanations. What could be explained, was, as time seemed to slow. The whole gang's back together. Yami was happy to sit back like he always did, he even tried to switch out but Yugi refused.

"Nope, you're not getting out of this one. Go say hi to everyone." Yugi said as he mentally pushed Yami forward.

Yami stumbled a few steps, right into Rebecca and Téa. The two girls started to say something then froze, their eyes wide. Yami then slowly stepped back and let them look over him. Rebecca eventually gasped as Téa covered her mouth in the same realization.

"You're not Yugi!" Rebecca blurted out. Yami nodded and held out the Millennium Puzzle.

"I can get him if you wish." He said. Rebecca closed her gaping mouth and looked to Téa. The actor found she had no words. Instead, she slowly walked up to him. With Yugi's new adult height Yami found he was now slightly taller than Téa. She looked up into his eyes and eventually pushed herself into his chest, tears flowing.

"Ho-how?!" She asked.

Yami saw the others turn to listen in on the question they all had been wondering. All he could do was a shrug. Despite his and Yugi's shared knowledge, they couldn't quite figure out how they did it. They knew it had something to do with Force and Power, and maybe the Higher Ups, but other than that they were at a loss.

"Don't just shrug Uncle! I want to know that answer too!" All the Mutos turned when they heard the young voice of AJ. The boy was quickly climbing down to the group, followed by a pack of Mokuba's men and what looked like Joey's and Yugi's helicopter pilot.

"Atem James Muto!" Rebecca yelped in a mixture of anger and grudging respect. The boy leaped the last set of stairs and ran to Yami, hiding behind him as the men came down gasping.

"We are sorry Mr. Kaiba. This little hitchhiker snuck onto the helicopter. He ran past us when we weren't looking." One of the men said as he looked at Mokuba.

"AJ, you know that was extremely dangerous," Yami said, hiding his own chuckle.

"Not any more dangerous than what the adults were doing. I simply slipped behind the passenger seats when everyone was running onto the helicopter and the babysitter Mom got Chell wasn't looking. I then waited to see where the adults went. Once I figured out that you guys had made it down safely, I knew I could." AJ grinned. His smile quickly disappeared when his mom pulled him out from behind Yami by his ear.

"You are in so much trouble young man. Coffee's going to envy you after your grounding." Rebecca huffed.

"Tell her to go easy on AJ. This could be goodbye." Yugi told Yami. Yami shook his head.

"You do it, I am not getting involved in family affairs," Yami said.

"But you are family," AJ said. Yami realized he had accidentally spoken out loud and turned back to the group.

"I… I suppose I am…" Yami trailed off as he looked at everyone. Bitter-sweet warmth flowing through his heart. It was then Seto stepped forward, walking right up to the Yami and looking him over.

"No dodging the question. Even if you're stopped from talking by some magical force. Why are you two together again?" He snapped. Yami and Yugi glanced at each other. They truly didn't have an answer.

"It was probably friendship," Yami said. Yugi echoed that with a shrug of his own. The others looked to them with even more questions, Seto going as far as groaning at the word friendship. Then they all heard a soft chuckle by the reactor.

"I told you friendship is often one of the strongest forces in this universe." They all turned to see a simple man dressed in crimson robes walk to the group. The strange thing was that there was no stairs or walkways from where this man came from, just the reactor. "That's why there are five to six Signers. A few always hit it off no matter what."

"And who are you?" challenged Mokuba, striding right up to the man and trying to use his height to intimidate.

"Do not worry Mokuba, I am a friend." The man said as he pointed to the group that had seen the afterlife. They all had shocked expressions on their faces.

"Crimson Dragon! How are you in your human form?" Mahad dared to ask. Once the other's heard the name Crimson Dragon they all stood to attention, not wanting to anger the god.

"With this recent battle, the Earthbound Immortals have pulled away for the moment. Their first free sibling is still weak, using what little power it had to control a human earlier today. Their second sibling is currently trapped in a prison they do not know." he said while pointing to the Millennium Puzzle. "This has allowed me to be human once again for a while. As this war continues, I will lose more and more of my humanity until these Immortals are truly locked away for another five-thousand-years. Allow me to indulged myself these few moments."

They all were silent, simply staring. Mahad did have questions, though he didn't dare speak them. His eyes, however, kept flicking between the god and the reactor.

"Ah, you wonder how I am here? Same way as you. A hole in the barrier does not immediately close and the six of you were not the only ones hoping to use it. Someone had to protect it" The dragon smiled. The others shifted in place, eventually, it was Téa that spoke.

"Um, Mr. Dragon God, sir… You said 'at the moment'. The Immortals are coming back?" She asked. The dragon sadly nodded.

"It is how it has been since the creation of the world. The Immortals and I have fought every five-thousand years for the fate of the world. I will admit my mistakes, and I cannot apologize enough for this one. I tried to get an early lead this time by having one of my Signers born early. Since all things must be in balance, one of the Earthbound Immortals escaped the netherworld prematurely, a spider named Uru." The dragon explained as he looked to Yami. He then remembered the spider sign on Ren, the shadow drone that was made of the man. "That Dark Signer is very weak thanks to the fact it was made the same time as the Zero Reverse. It will not try anything if its siblings are not by its side.

"That Dark Signer is hidden from my sight and will most likely stay hidden until the others are out. There is nothing we can do about it, but we can still lock away the others, including Wiraqocha Rasca. They are still fighting thanks to the Zero Reverse loosening their chains. Their next ploy to breakout was you Atem." he explained.

Yami found himself gripping the Millennium Puzzle, hearing the distant calls of the condor. Yugi put his spectral hand on Yami's shoulder. Yami rested his own on it, even if it was not truly there.

"I know very well what Wiraqocha Rasca used to get you to side with it. I know I am only adding to its evidence, but I need you again. I need you to help to fully lock away the other Immortals until our battle can rightly be fought." The dragon ended.

The silence became deafening. Both Yugi and Yami knew this was coming but other than the six from the afterlife, the group didn't realize that this was the moment.

"Wait! Why do you need Uncle?" AJ cried.

"This ceremony will lock away the Immortals similar to how the Pharaoh locked away Zorc, without the insanity and five-thousand years of nothing of course." The dragon explained.

AJ clung to his uncle's side tighter, realizing what that meant. Yami sighed and bent down to the child.

"It's how I can get back to my paradise. My family and friends are waiting for me."

"But you're our family too, you just said so! I just got to know you! I just started liking my real name because of you!" AJ sobbed as he pushed his head into Yami's chest. Yami could only hug the little child as Yugi started floating closer.

"Should I take over?"

'No. I am the one leaving. I should be the one to explain.' Yami thought, then said out loud.

"By doing this I get a great many things that I've always sought. Peace and family being the biggest. I know I have family here and am loved… thanks to this last day I know that really well." He said as he looked around at everyone "Yet, I have another family I owe my time to." Yami said as he helped wipe away the boy's tears.

Mana and Mahad stepped forward like they were trying to say something. The words died in both their throats as Yami stood.

"I know everyone back in the afterlife said they'd be happy to wait for me, but I don't want to wait for them. I know I will see everyone here again, why not add my Egyptian family to the list?" Yami said. Mahad slowly nodded his head and Mana copied, trying to be strong. "I am ready," Yami said as he turned to the Crimson Dragon.

"You are fine with being locked in the afterlife these coming years?" The dragon asked.

"Yes." Saying that one word was somehow the hardest thing Yami had done this last crazy year.

"Understood."

Serenity, Mai, Duke, and Tristan tried to step forward but the dragon raised his hand.

"You are all too weak to attempt the ceremony again, but there are others to take your place." He said as he looked to the others.

After a few minutes of explaining interjected with stunned silences, the others agreed. The Millennium Items were passed around until they accepted someone. The necklace to Téa, the scales to Rebecca, the key to Mokuba. Marik tried to take they rod but found he couldn't even look at the thing. It was Seto that pushed him aside and gracefully wielded the rod, like his hands had always been made for it. As he tried it out Mana couldn't hide a giggle as Mahad shushed her.

"What is it?" Seto nearly barked.

"It's just… you look like a friend of ours, that's all." Mana quickly said.

Marik and Bakura found themselves in front of the ring and the eye. Bakura hastily looked around to see if there were any other items open.

"I can try the ring. I understand if you can't-" Marik said. He was cut off by Bakura kissing him.

"I know I'm strong enough. Especially with you by my side." He said as he gently took the ring. For a moment the thing fought, dark shadows exploding from it and the dangling prongs pointing right at Bakura's chest. Marik was ready to jump between the ring and Bakura, but it never came to that. Bakura remained strong, having grown from his time as a teen. He stared down the ring unflinching and soon, the ring rested, all shadows gone. Marik hugged Bakura tight and then grabbed the eye. It had no choice but to accept him, however, he could tell it wasn't quite happy with the arrangement.

"We ready?" The dragon asked. "Then, Atem please stand in this center area in front of the reactor and everyone with an item make a circle around him." They followed wordlessly and soon, lights once again burst out of the items. As the Millennium Puzzle began to glow itself, Yami and Yugi felt a splitting sensation. The cries of the Immortal got ear-piercing, blocking out even the Crimson Dragon's commands. Then Yugi found himself looking out of his own body with Yami standing in front of him.

Before anyone could move the lights disconnected from the items and went flying into the reactor, taking the screaming violet soul with it. As the lights joined with the reactor it began to spin again, the golden slowly turning into a rainbow of light. A wave of energy shot past the group, AJ and the KaibaCorp men even being pushed back. A cacophony of screams and calls joined the violet soul's cries, but those soon quieted until only the reactor could be heard.

"We no longer need the items, you are free to put them down." The dragon said, but he didn't have to as almost all the items disappeared into a golden light of their own and flew into the reactor. All but the Millennium Puzzle, that still sat on Yami's neck.

"What just happened?" Tristan asked.

"The items returned to their resting place, just as you must." The dragon said as he looked at Tristan and his afterlife companions. They sadly nodded, taking a few steps forward. "We do not have to leave right this second. I can hold us here for a minute or two for goodbyes."

The other readily thanked the god as they got down to business. It was a flurry of goodbyes, much more desperate and meaningful then earlier. Kisses and Yugi approved bearhugs filled the reactor. As they did this AJ noticed something.

"Hey, it stopped snowing," AJ said as he pointed up. Just as he said, the snow stopped as soon as it began.

"I hope it did." The dragon snorted. "These blizzards weren't ordinary weather phenomena. They were signs of the weak barrier between this life and the next."

"Wait? Every blizzard?" Téa asked incredulously.

"No, not every blizzard. Just the most recent two. I am sure you saw weird things during them, like duel spirits. Each time they began was because the Immortals were starting another push towards the surface." The dragon explained.

"Wait, if the snow started because of evil demons… Does that mean I made evil snowmen?!" AJ yelped. This caused the others to break out laughing. It was less because he had said anything hilarious and more because all their emotions were heightened to the point of breaking.

While the others' goodbyes were loud, when it came to Yami no words needed to be said. Slowly everyone came up to him and either hugged or in Seto's case, threatened.

"You better be ready for our rematch. While I will utterly defeat you again, you not even trying would be a disappointment." Seto said with a hint of a genuine smile. Yami curtly nodded and grinned at his rival. He was getting pumped just thinking about it.

When everyone had said their goodbye, Yami slowly turned to the Crimson Dragon who was looking at the Zero Reverse rubble sadly. Yami could hear the sobs behind him. Feeling the guilt creep up he looked to Yugi for support. He was there with a true smile on his face, no tears and no words. They had purposefully left each other for last.

"I'll miss you, other me," Yugi said.

"I too, partner," Yami replied. There was nothing left to say. What could be said was already told to each other through facial expressions and mental links. Yami then had an idea and looked down at the Millennium Puzzle. He glanced to the dragon who nodded, knowing what the pharaoh wanted.

"Yugi, since this can now only be broken by the last person that put it together, can you pull out the central piece for me?" Yami asked. Yugi's eyebrow raised as he looked from Yami to the dragon.

"Will this end the ceremony or cause another connection to the afterlife?" Yugi asked

"No, the ceremony is almost done, all I need is Atem's soul. That piece will have no power other than what you give it."

Yugi studied the puzzle for a few moments, then did as Yami asked. With a click, the puzzle reopened. For a moment it sounded like the puzzle exhaled, like a tomb opening after thousands of years.

"Here, I want you to have it," Yami said as he closed Yugi's hand around the piece. "I don't want to give you the whole item because… well." Yami glanced back towards Seto as he talked with the magicians. "I don't want someone accidentally wishing me back." Yami smiled. Yugi gripped the piece and then pulled it to his heart.

"Of course. Thank you, Yami, for everything." It was then Rebecca came up and hugged Yugi around the waist as AJ hopped over.

"And I give my thanks to you too. All of you." Yami said as the others going back to the afterlife stood beside him.

The Crimson Dragon nodded and lead the group to the shining reactor. He walked through the light and disappeared. The others gave off shouts of goodbye and waved wildly. Yami finally had the strength to look back at the group before he walked into the light. He was glad for it because he was able to see everyone's smiling faces and imagine all their lives ahead of them. He knew they would forever be by his side and he theirs. Their partnership would never end.

Then the light shut, leaving nothing but a broken reactor.

There was no collapsing shrine this time, just silence. This let Yugi fall to his knees and sob the tears he had been holding back. It was one of the happiest moments of his life all over again. Atem was free.

* * *

The next few days were quiet. Yugi immediately stored the puzzle piece with Atem's cartouche in the Millennium Puzzle's golden box. It was soon after they all realized they could no longer speak of the afterlife or anything of what happened to them. They at least kept their memories, which they decided to be thankful for. However, not being able to talk about the events made it hard for Seto when he suddenly burst into the Muto's residences. Joey and Téa were hanging out with the family when Seto barged in with Mokuba scurrying in after. When the Mutos tried to ask what was going on both brothers couldn't find the words. Mokuba began wildly gesturing while Seto stood back tapping his foot, clearly upset that the group couldn't read minds.

The two tried pointing at a calendar then pointing to Seto, then they tried to find a thermometer but the Mutos didn't have one. Eventually, Mokuba gave up with a frustrated sigh.

"Forget it guys." He sighed as he collapsed into a chair. Seto refused to give in and continued to paces around while muttering broken sentences. Eventually, he snapped his fingers and pointed to his right leg. He had everyone watch as he walked.

"What? So, you can walk?" Joey sighed. It was Téa that then snapped her fingers.

"No limp!" She cried. She tried to say more but her mouth was shut.

Yugi then got up and walked to Seto, looking right into his face. It was subtle, but there were changes, a sharpening of Seto's edges. Yugi then carefully reached up and pulled out a grey hair. That little strand was enough to make Yugi nearly lose his footing. He showed it to those that hadn't caught on yet.

"Both our parents had grey hair before they were thirty, I have to dye mine this black-blue and I think Seto will too." Mokuba smiled. The others soon joined the silly smiling, no words being able to pass between the group.

"But…How?" Rebecca asked. More silences. Everyone looked to Yugi since he was the one with the connection to the Higher Ups. He shrugged, he hadn't had any epiphanies since the Ener-D reactor, but he had a feeling it had something to do with their friends that just went back to the afterlife.

"Friendship?" Yugi suggested.

* * *

The inability to talk about what happened was also a problem for the gang when it came time to explain to Sector Security and the public where Atem disappeared to. There was an uproar and a surprisingly in-depth search made by Sector Security. They were close to suspecting Yugi for the disappearance, but at that point, it had been years since Atem left and the public had moved on. No one wanted to be the one to arrest Yugi Muto. Even Rex Goodwin couldn't keep the public's good graces if he ordered that without sufficient evidence.

It really did look like Atem disappeared as quickly as he appeared. There were conspiracy theories abound, Bakura was even invited to be on a TV show about unsolved celebrity mysteries. He was most likely chosen as he was relatively close to the Mutos but not in the direct family. The other encouraged him to go on and they laughed and joked together when the episode finally aired. The ideas the show put forth was honestly just as strange as the actual answer.

* * *

There were many, many things Yugi missed from his time with Atem, the most useful being shadow magic. While Jaden still had the Gentle Darkness, Yugi found he no longer remembered how to use it. Yugi tried many times, but that door was closed to him. Because of that, he couldn't even attempt to connect to the afterlife, knowing how to do the ceremony or not. While sad, he still had his duel spirits by him. Dark Magician Girl returned to the duel monsters world but visited every so often. Gandora was back to sleeping in the front yard twenty-four-seven, though she loved to possess any Pokémon hologram that came her way.

As Yugi worked on the next game in the Pokémon series, he found the three Pokémon the Egyptian gods took over still in his handheld. Yugi brought each out into virtual reality but they were nothing more than holograms once again. That didn't stop Yugi from adding them to his official team.

While Pokémon remained a very popular franchise that spread across the globe, it never changed society as Duel Monsters did. Yugi and Rebecca were fine with that. They never set out to make a culture changing game, they just wanted to make a fun time. They worked on it and many other games until they both retired at around sixty and passed it off to the next generation. Neither of their children got into video game development so the two passed it off to a group of investors that they knew they could trust, and for the rest of their life they never regretted it.

* * *

In the coming years AJ grew into a very tall man, towering over his parents. He ended up taking a strange career path, he used his inquisitive mind to become a problem consultant. Any time a city or company had a problem they couldn't solve, they could hire him to fix it. It could be anything from engineering to management and AJ would think of something. AJ eventually got married to a girl from New Domino. Both Yugi and Rebecca approved (not that it would have affected AJ's decision) and the two stayed in Japan for most of their lives. Eventually having three kids together that their grandparents absolutely adored.

* * *

Chell ended up becoming a teacher and coach. She grew very tired of video games and board games growing up and wanted to stay as far away from them as she could. She found athletics to be her passion. In her youth, she became very good at softball and even got into the college leagues. When she was older, she happily taught the next generation how to play. She chose to be specifically a teacher thanks to one of her favorite family friends, Bakura.

* * *

Bakura and Marik eventually got married down the line but never adopted any children. They instead spent their time together with the New Rare Hunters and once Bakura retired, ended up traveling the world together. They saw the places Marik always wanted to see as a kid and the places Bakura wanted to study. Bakura ran his various podcast far into retirement, one on supernatural findings, and one for RPGs. Despite Yugi losing his connection to the afterlife, Bakura always felt his. It never was world saving but Bakura was able to keep himself and his husband out of a few sticky situations with it.

* * *

Seto found his new retirement life relaxing, too relaxing. Mokuba and his therapist had a hard time keeping him out of the office. Eventually, Seto settled with investing in companies and ideas. While he was never an official CEO again, he found himself a big contributor to many multi-million-dollar companies, some he helped build from nothing. While he promised his family to never get too involved with running the companies, it didn't take long for Seto's days to be filled with meetings and calls. Exactly how he liked it.

Mokuba remained the CEO of KaibaCorp and took it to new heights. He helped grow the Turbo Dueling circuit and even gave it a championship title with the same clout as the King of Games. In his home life, he had one child. His daughter loved her parents, but most of all she loved 'Unkey Seto!' She always talked about how great her uncle was and about how he would play with her often. Yugi and the other's eyes just about bulged out of their skulls when they heard how doting Seto seemed to be to the child. Mokuba's wife even sometimes complained about how spoiled the girl was becoming.

When the others saw the child with Seto though, he was just as cold to his niece as any other snot-nosed brat. It was only ever Joey that caught a small glimpse of maybe some kindness. He turned a corner one day to see Seto carrying the girl on his shoulders. It was quick however, as when Joey caught up to Seto, the girl was walking a distance behind her uncle. Seto not even acknowledging the child. Joey until the day he died was not sure if he had imagined it or not.

* * *

Joey's life didn't change too much from his chosen path. He remained single and a duelist. He never got to be the King of Games, but if he was honest with himself, that was never a title he really wanted. He remained in therapy and continued to work on keeping a healthy lifestyle. He stayed Yugi's best friend and became the closest thing to Seto's best friend too.

Joey also stayed a normal duelist as Turbo dueling took off, deciding to stick to the classics. That didn't mean he didn't try the occasional street duel, it was he just noticed a worrying trend as he got older. Pro dueling became much more cutthroat, more than ever before. This was especially true for Turbo Dueling, as people didn't think it was a good match unless someone crashed their speeding bike. The duel style eventually got so popular that when Mokuba made the title of Turbo Dueling Champion, the entire world took notice. Joey was there when a boy named Jack Atlas took the title. This Jack was very cruel and proud, like a rougher version of Kaiba. It was then Joey retired from dueling. He still loved the game but he couldn't take the lifestyle anymore.

Joey had enough money saved from his years at the top so he never worried about that, but he often worried for the next generation of dueling. Of course, this just made him sound like a grumpy grandpa and over time he really leaned into that image. Laughing along with the world as he complained about every new thing.

* * *

Jaden was a great King of Games and kept the title until he died at an old age. He did his best to keep the connection between duel spirits and duelist strong. As time went on though, duel spirits stopped coming into the human dimension as often. Even disappearing altogether at one point. Eventually Jaden and his friends found out there was a takeover by one of the Earthbound Immortals in the duel spirit world and traveled there to help. They were gone for years. Leaving the Turbo Dueling Champion to take the world's interest.

* * *

Téa remained a worldwide star even as she aged. Becoming an icon for many generations with her stubborn, tom-boyish, but kind attitude. This included being surprisingly good at Pokémon, even taking home a few championships. She never married but did have a few boyfriends over time, but she was just fine with that. She was happy to be her own women. That didn't mean she never had any children. She adopted two girls, one from the Satellite and one from Diva's and Sera's orphanage. They were raised with Chell and became good friends of hers. One even marrying Chell. That wedding became a point the entire gang got back together, then they all vacated New Domino city together.

* * *

Just like dueling and duel spirits, the gang all saw as the world became harsher and crueler the closer to seventeen years they became. When it came to be the year the Earthbound Immortals were free, everyone that knew about it left the city. They all watched in horror, safe in other countries, as the Earthbound Immortals wreak havoc. Of course, by then the Crimson Dragon's Signers were as ready as they could be. That, however, is another story.

For the gang everything ended fine, even Jaden and his friends made it back to the human world. They were not called back into action and never found themselves stuck saving the world again. They still did their best to make the world a better place once they moved back into New Domino city, but it was never because destiny or higher beings told them to. It was because they truly wanted to.

* * *

Either because of his good genetics, healthy lifestyle, or his gifts from the Higher Ups, Yugi found himself outliving his friends. Seto was the first to go. His body was old and broken, used to the point of no return, just how Seto wanted it. His Blue-Eyes card was retired and Yugi spoke at his funeral.

Yugi found himself speaking at many more funerals as the years passed. Each he knew would be fine in the life to come. Yet, he still found himself getting sadder with every card retirement. The hardest one for him was Rebecca's passing. It was just his children, his grandchildren, Gandora, and Dark Magician Girl then.

Soon Yugi found it hard living outside a hospital. His family visited often, bringing the newest games invented and being beaten soundly by Yugi at almost everyone. Gandora always grumbled about the nurses and happily scared off any rabid fans, swearing to protect Yugi till the end. Dark Magician Girl popped by more often and tried to keep Yugi's brain active with games and riddles. They all knew the inevitable was coming, they simply worked to make sure his moments were comfortable and enjoyable. Yugi thanked the girls and his family for doing so, he was keeping his promise to Atem. He was working to keep their reunion as far off as possible.

One night, Yugi turned in early because he didn't feel well. While in bed he found himself strangely introspective. As he went through his memories, he found himself grabbing for a chain necklace that didn't exist in this world anymore. Yugi then turned to the golden box he kept by his bed stand. With what little strength he had left he pulled out what was inside the velveted box, a cartouche and a golden puzzle piece. He held them close to his chest and finally went to sleep.

When he opened his eyes again, he found himself in a familiar endless desert right next to a flowing river. Yugi couldn't stop the smile from spreading across his face as he ran for the city he saw off in the distance. He didn't have to run long as he heard a motor and hooves behind him. He turned to see Tristan roll up on a motorbike with Joey right beside him trying to drive the chariot. Each looking exactly like how Yugi remembered them in their twenties.

He quickly jumped up next to Joey and they drove to the city. People occasionally waved but most focused on their own journeys. Yugi however happily waved to almost everyone, even the jackal-headed guards. The three eventually made it through the crowded streets to the large palace in the middle of the city. Yugi hopped out and met with many more familiar faces. He met them all with equal happiness, even finding Rebecca inside and scooping her up in one big armful.

Eventually, Yugi made his way to the throne room, holding tightly to his family in one hand and the Millennium piece in the other. The others followed with barely hidden excitement as Yugi opened the gold double doors and faced the throne. In the room was an adult Atem, he was about the height of Yugi and was wearing the Millennium Puzzle with its central piece missing. Yugi ran into the room and Atem leaped off his throne. They met in the middle with no words, only a deep hug. With a click, the puzzle was reconnected and everyone knew,

It would never be broken again.

 **Here we are, almost a year later we are finally at the end. I cannot thank you guys enough for this amazing journey. This was my first ever fanfiction posted on the internet and you know what I was expecting? My goal was to get 12 people to favorite the story, I literally said that to myself and at that time it seemed too much of a stretch. I wasn't even expecting such kind reviews, the most I thought I was going to get was trolling! So again, from the bottom of my heart, thank you!**

 **For what is next, I am going back and editing this story. I'm going to change some dates, names, and better hint at coming twists now that I finally know where the story ends.**

 **If you really don't want to see the Q &A or the alternate end then I guess I'll see you around. ^.^ I have another Yu-Gi-Oh fanfic planned that takes place during the original series, but that won't be out until February. I hope you'll be interested, but if not, I'll say it once again.**

 **Thank you!**

 **You've made this girl happier then you can imagine.**


	41. Alternate Ending

**I consider the last chapter to be the "true" ending, this is just for fun. Don't take it too seriously. (P.S For those that haven't read the re-edits, Yugi's daughter's name was changed to Chell)**

"But you're our family too, you just said so! I just got to know you! I just started liking my real name because of you!" AJ sobbed as he pushed his head into Yami's chest. Yami could only hug the little child as Yugi started floating closer.

"Should I take over?"

'No, I am the one leaving. I should be the one to explain.' Yami thought, then said out loud.

"By doing this I get a great many things that I've always sought. Peace and family being the biggest. I know I have family here and am loved… thanks to this last day I know that really well." He said as he looked around at everyone, He wanted to say more but found his words dying in his throat. He could only help wipe away the boy's tears. "But even if I wanted to stay, we need to lock the Immortals away. I'm required back in the afterlife."

"You are fine with being locked in the afterlife these coming years?" The dragon asked.

"Yes." Saying that one word was somehow the hardest thing Yami had done this last crazy year. His voice shook as he said the word. The dragon noticed and raised an eyebrow.

"Listen to my next words carefully Pharaoh, you cut me off last time I tried to speak them. I do not mind renegotiating where your soul will be. I am happy to change things around if you do not want to be in the afterlife. I can just as easily lock you in this dimension."

Everyone became dead silent. Even the humming of the reactor seemed to dim.

"…What?" Yami asked. As he stood, he couldn't help but rub his arm. Under his coat, he could still feel the scars from the yo-yo wire all those weeks ago.

"For this ceremony to work I need to banish your soul somewhere, it does not have to be in the afterlife, however." the dragon said as he gestured to Yami. "That body of yours will age and get sick. Much like normal human bodies do, so I understand if you don't want to be this fragile anymore-"

Yugi then stepped forward to speak the words Yami found he couldn't. "Crimson Dragon, sir, what do you mean he can be banished here?"

"You may spend the seventeen years of the spell here in the mortal world. Of course, when it is over you will have 'saved the world' so you will still go back to your paradise-"

"He can what?!" Joey's voice broke the silence. The Dragon seemed a bit perturbed at being continually cut off. Mahad and Mana flinched and seemed ready to run but the dragon let out a breath, mumbling something about mortals under his breath.

"He can stay!" The dragon yelled. "I did not bring up this alternative before because it involves his soul being locked in the Millennium Puzzle again."

Yami immediately took a step back at those words. He glanced to the others. A mixture of hope and confusion filled their faces, AJ's and Yugi's expressions being the ones that really cut to his core. Could he stay? Could he take being in the Millennium Puzzle again? Yami couldn't suppress a shiver as he remembered the winding passages of the puzzle. His train of thought was then cut off by Seto striding forward.

"Well, get on with it then. I don't want to be by this reactor any longer than necessary. Put the Pharaoh in the body and let's go." Seto said.

"That is up for Yami to decide!" Yugi's voice seemed to cut across the reactor. Only the magicians, Yami, and the dragon were supposed to be able to hear him in his spectral form, yet everyone reacted. It suddenly felt like everyone's eyes were on Yami. While this wouldn't usually bother him, here their eyes felt like they were boring right into him.

Ignoring Seto's glare, Yugi turned back to Atem. "I understand how much you want to be in the afterlife again. I also understand how your time trapped the puzzle has affected you. These guys will understand too given enough time. Don't make a rash decision just for us."

Yami could only stare at Yugi for a moment. Then he closed his eyes and kept his head pointed towards the ground. "How will locking me here work, if I did choose to do it?" He asked the dragon.

"Your soul would be locked in the Millennium Puzzle, much like how it was done five-thousand-years ago. In this case, however, the magic that I would have used to lock your soul away in the large afterlife will instead connect this body to you. You will be a normal human for seventeen years. You would not notice much of a difference compared to if your soul was in your body." The dragon explained. Everyone around gasped.

"You could finally grow up with your modern friends!" Mana cheered. Mahad kept her from hopping in place and instead looked to his pharaoh.

Yami kept his gaze down, not looking to anyone. "Wouldn't that threaten the spell? As you said human bodies are fragile and this world is unpredictable. What would happen if my body was destroyed or the puzzle broke?"

"If your body was hurt to the point of dying or traveled too far from the puzzle, then it would fade with your soul reappearing in the puzzle. Do not fear however, this would not break the ceremony and the body would regenerate the coming months. Allowing your soul to return to it when it was ready. Until then you would be trapped in the puzzle unless someone wore it and allowed you to share their body." The dragon said as he glanced to Yugi. "For the puzzle itself. As you found out, I rebuilt it much stronger. It can only be broken apart by the last person to reconstruct it, and even then, it would take all this person's strength to do so. Unless Yugi is suddenly set on freeing the Immortals, I doubt that would happen."

Yugi found himself weak as the dragon spoke, losing all the courage he had been building up for the parting. He saw Yami glancing at him, most likely looking for guidance. Yugi didn't dare speak one way or the other.

'Yugi, speak honestly with me.' Yami asked in their mental connection. 'What was your wish when you reconnected the puzzle?'

"What do you mean?"

'We both know the puzzle can only be pieced together when you have a wish in your heart. What was yours?'

Yugi found his own gaze going to the ground. "I wished… I wished I had more time with you. To be by your side a little longer… And I've gotten that! When I rebuilt the thing, I thought you were being dragged to the netherworld to never be seen again." Yugi quickly added.

Yami lifted his head and looked to Mana and Mahad. They were smiling, tear rimming Mana's eyes.

Mahad nodded to Yami. "We will be by your side. No matter where you are. All of us." This was the permission Yami needed.

"Crimson Dragon, I cannot thank you enough for your kindness so far and this opportunity. Please, I would like to stay." Yami said the words he sometimes wished he had said nineteen years ago at the first ceremonially duel.

The dragon smiled and nodded. "It will be done."

Everyone cheered and just about swarmed Yami. As they all cheered at the same time, Joey slunk out of the crowd and stood in front of the Crimson Dragon. He was clearly uncomfortable, keeping his head down and tapping his foot. He didn't know if he should bow or just talk straight.

"You wish to ask something, Joseph?" The dragon asked, a comforting smile on his face.

"Uh, yes your greatness. If… if you could let Atem stay… Your godliness is it possible for you to let others…?" Joey trailed off when he saw the dragon's smile disappear. The dragon shook his head as he looked to the group going back with him.

"I am sorry Joseph. I truly am. Atem can stay because his soul has been in a state of undeath for most of his existence. If I tried a similar thing on your family, for one I do not have the power left for such a mass spell, and two, it would destroy them."

"Oh, I get it," Joey mumbled as he looked away, embarrassed.

"You do not need to feel shame for asking such a question. I only wish I could make it up to you and the rest of your kind. In many ways, the Zero Reverse is my fault. I can never take back the damage that was done, but I can make sure the Immortals never do it again." The dragon said with a toothy grin. Even in his human form, his teeth were sharp to a point. Joey, stiffen when he saw the teeth, then nodded. He as went back to the group and was met with a big hug from his sister and a pat on the back from his brother-in-law.

"I'll miss you, big brother. You don't have to worry about us though. As lifelong heroes, we are well taken care of." Serenity said.

"Heh, dat's a little reassurin'. I can almost let you go." Joey chuckled.

"May we do the ceremony? You may say goodbye afterward." The dragon asked.

* * *

"Wait, if the snow started because of evil demons… Does that mean I made evil snowmen?!" AJ yelped. This caused the others to break out laughing. It was less because he had said anything hilarious and more because all their emotions were heightened to the point of breaking.

As everyone said their goodbyes Yami felt strangely numb. The last time he had such a goodbye everything felt like it had more of a punch to it. Here the black sky seemed to combine with the light of the reactor and grey everything.

"We'll see you soon Atem." Mana's voice shook Yami out of his disconnection. He looked up to see her still smiling face, even if she was hiding tears. "You didn't think you were getting away without a goodbye, did you?"

"Of course not." Yami smiled as he hugged his childhood friend. As he did, he couldn't help but feel prickles of guilt. Mana somehow recognized it without even seeing the Pharaoh's face.

"Don't you dare." She said, still pulling Yami into a hug.

"What-?"

"Don't you dare start feeling guilty. This is what you want and we want it for you." She said as she pulled away, letting her hands lay in his. "While we will miss you, if it ever gets too bad we can just remind ourselves that's it's only seventeen years. We've waited much longer to have you with us." She smiled.

"Yes, seventeen years…" It was about that moment Yami realized how many years he would have. In afterlife terms, it wouldn't be that long but for mortals he would be thirty-three when he returned.

Mana giggled at Yami's wide eyes as he realized how long he had. "Don't go backing out now! You can do this." She said before quickly kissing him on his cheek and running to the group heading back to the afterlife. Mahad patted Mana and gave a kind smile back to his pharaoh. Yami was frozen in place and it was only Joey coming up and roughly slapping his back that awoke him.

Everyone then turned to the reactor as the last goodbyes were said. The Crimson Dragon led the others to the reactor's light but didn't go through himself. He instead waited for them to disappear and then walked up to Yami. He lifted up the Millennium Puzzle and placed his hand over the center eye. A red aura surrounded the puzzle and to Yami, it almost felt like his soul clicked into place, like its own puzzle piece. The Crimson Dragon gave one last bow and disappeared along with the reactors light. It was just them in a broken and cold ruin.

"It doesn't feel real." Yugi managed to say. Everyone then turned to Yami, he was still standing tall with the golden puzzle around his neck. Then he pitched forward and fell unconscious before Yugi caught him. He needed rest, and now was going to finally get it.

* * *

The next few days were… odd. The gang had this problem every time they saved the world, what do you do after? Here that feeling was multiplied by ten. Every morning was like it had been before the tournament. Atem woke first (this time with no nightmares) and made breakfast for everyone with the 3D printer. As they ate, AJ would hastily do the homework he had been putting off. The other family members would talk over their meal (Yugi still calling his brother Yami, as he was the only one Atem felt comfortable enough to allow such a nickname). Then the adults would go to work, AJ to school, Chell to daycare, and Atem would remain home. It was almost too normal. It was about a week before it really set in for everyone. Atem was here to stay.

Once that hurdle was passed, talks of Atem's future became the point of discussion for everyone. Atem was going to be with them for a whole seventeen years, that's a good chunk of a lifetime to suddenly have to plan for.

It was decided for him to not go to public school right off the bat. Even though he was very smart, he wouldn't know enough to pass as a modern high schooler. The next two years he did online school provided by Seto's Duel Academy with the goal of eventually going to Academy Island to finish out his high school years. During that time, he started dueling in local Duel Monster tournaments and Pokémon championships. Winning every one and quickly making a name for himself with his no-lose record (and his last name).

While becoming a pro-duelist was his future career goal, Atem didn't want to just do that. He found himself still interested in programming and while Yugi and Rebecca loved to teach him, they often didn't have enough time for Atem's liking. He soon found a video game programming club nearby and thought to take a chance. What was strange was when he got there, only one boy about his age was present. Which was even more bizarre to Atem since he was used to his recent fame making every public place cramped. The only boy there was named Kei. He had apparently run everyone else out because as the club president, he outlawed duel monsters from being anywhere near his club. He vehemently hated the game and swore it off, only focusing on the "true art" of virtual reality games. He enthusiastically shared this and many other opinions with Atem. While this made Atem back off a bit initially, he couldn't help but be drawn back to the club by Kei's enthusiasm, intelligence for the computer arts, and what was quickly becoming most important to Atem, Kei only liked him for him, not for his dueling record.

With Kei as Atem's first friend outside the gang, he found himself going out often and meeting more and more people "his age". It took a while to get used to no responsibilities to the world or to a kingdom. Atem even found himself feeling guilty for having fun, but after much encouragement from Yugi and the others, Atem embraced it. He soon had his own group of friends and a line of admirers (He thankfully had Bakura to teach him what to do about all the boys and girls stalking him and showering him with gifts).

* * *

Atem did eventually go to Duel Academy as an Obelisk Blue, but for only the last two years. While there he was joined by surprisingly, Kei. Kei grumbled and gripped, but Duel Academy did have the best virtual reality high school and college program in the world. The two kept each other sane as Atem's popularity only grew as well as his record.

Once Atem graduated he jumped headlong into pro-dueling, both classic and turbo. Just as in his school days, his fame grew. Many thought he would go for the King of Games title. Jaden was even pumped for such a duel, but Atem never challenged for it. He also never kept one sponsor, never remained romantically attached with any person, or even remained in one house for long. Instead, he traveled the world, trying to experience all there was to see and feel. While he kept his regal calm and rational in every situation, Yugi and the others could tell he was determined to get every ounce out of life he could. Even with his constant moving though, he never stopped visiting the gang, especially the Mutos. He even brought them along on some of his adventures. While never as dangerous as their childhoods, it was just as thrilling

* * *

Of course, Atem's loose attachment to his body became a problem at points. He found it hard to take the Millennium Puzzle off for long. If he did, he quickly became lethargic. It became a real annoyance during times like tests since teachers would often have him take it off so he couldn't hide answers in it. What was worse was if the puzzle got a mile away from his body. He found this out when traveling through South America. While exploring the Andes mountains a condor grabbed it right off his neck and flew away. His body outright disappeared in the middle of chasing after the bird. Thankfully Yugi was able to recollect the puzzle and the two had to once again share a body for three months. This made Atem more careful and also made him hate condors, just a little more.

There were a few other times Atem had to share bodies with someone, the most notable was when he was flying with Seto and their plane crashed. When KaibaCorp found the island the two crashed on weeks later, there was only Seto. He was wearing the puzzle and acting a great deal differently than his old employees remembered. Once the puzzle was returned to Yugi neither Seto or Atem spoke of the experience again. Only Yugi, who saw the memories, knew what happened. When asked about it, he would only laugh.

* * *

Atem was at every major family and friend event. Even if he was coughing up blood or ready to collapse, he was there for every graduation, every marriage, every great achievement. He was going to be a part of their lives even if it killed him again. He was truly happy for most of his second life, then that looming seventeen-year deadline came.

Months before the Immortals were truly released, Atem felt the change in his body. He could never explain it in words but he knew the end was coming. He packed up his belongings one more time, won one last championship tournament, and headed back to Yugi's house. There he was able to see Chell get married and hang out one more time with his oldest friends.

Before Atem left this world, some Immortals broke free. With every free beast, the strain on Atem grew worse. He knew that at any moment he could let go and he will have done his job, but he refused. He held the ceremony together longer then even the Higher Ups had predicted. Making sure the Signers had more time and that Wiraqocha Rasca was the last Immortal to get out. It literally pulled his soul in a million directions and left him bedridden, but he didn't care. He had been through much worse.

Then an unofficial duel between the Turbo Dueling Champion and a nobody from the Satellite broke the news in New Domino. Their fight somehow caused a city-wide blackout. The strangest event during this blackout was that no one could explain the weird crimson lights in the sky. Some said they even looked like a large dragon. At that point, Atem knew it was time. He called Yugi to his side and had him pull out the puzzle's central piece. The Immortals were already free so there wasn't any reason to keep it together. He gave the piece to Yugi and promised to see him again. With that, he closed his eyes and his body disappeared one last time into crimson light.

Atem was free.

 **Question and Answer**

Some of these I got through direct PM and some were thoughts and question picked out of reviews and comments. I may have already answered some of these through PM or they weren't actually questions directed at me. I just thought you guys would be interested in the answers. If I took your question wrong, sorry! I'm not calling anyone out with these, this is all meant in good fun.

 **What got you into Yugioh?**

I didn't grow up with the original Yugioh, my Saturday mornings had Yugioh 5D's playing. I wasn't even very interested in that series and instead threw myself into Pokémon. In the winter of 2017, I decided I wanted to watch Yugioh GX but felt I couldn't do it without at least knowing what happened in the first series. My original plan was to only watch what people considered to be the best episodes…. Then, like any sane person, I ended up watching all 500+ episodes in one winter break. After that, I looked up everything I could about the first two series. I was hooked.

 **What made you think of this story?**

After I watched the original and GX series, I remembered the Yugioh I grew up with and the Zero Reverse it used to connect it with Duel Monsters. I realized how many characters must have died in that and that got my writer brain going. I combined that thought with a story idea I had kicking around (Yugi losing the ceremonial duel) and started typing it up. I still don't know to this day where I got the courage to post it on the internet

 **Why are there are people from all different eras and countries in Atem's Ancient Egyptian afterlife?**

The Story reason: The non-Egyptians are probably people traveling on their journey and this just happens to be one of their stopping points.

The real reason: I wanted to show that this was the afterlife and that Yugi did not time travel.

 **Why did you decide to put this fic in Friendship/Hurt/Comfort categories? Wouldn't be better in_?**

I really thought about adding this to the humor or the adventure list. In the end, I left it where it was because, in essence, this is a Duel Monsters fic about the original characters reacting to death and comforting each other through friendship.

 **Why did you have Yugi marry Rebecca?**

Oh, that's a long answer so buckle up.

First off, I don't hate Téa/Yugi or Yami/Yugi, in fact, I rather like both (If I were to rewrite this fic from the ground up, I probably would have Yugi marry Téa). But in my original draft, Téa died in the Zero Reverse. In that version Yugi's spouse was going to be left vague (Thus why the kids were adopted). Then I actually started writing and found it hard to have a mysterious spouse in a story about all the characters coming together again. So, I wrote in the next closest ship, Rebecca. As drafts changed and Téa was kept alive, I had already planned (and kind of fallen in love with) Yugi/Rebecca.

I did actually make a small reference to Peachshipping though, in my original edit Yugi and Rebecca's daughter was named Anzu. Then I finished the series and realized having a character named like that was confusing to readers that were used to her Japanese names. So, her name was changed to Chell in the re-edits.

And for Yugi/Yami, Atem's a teenager in this while Yugi's an adult. Puzzleshipping was definitely not going to happen here. Again, that doesn't mean I don't like the pairings, it just wasn't what this story was about.

 **Why write in the English dub world? Wasn't the Japanese better story wise?**

Yes, the original is much better story and character-wise, I will never deny that. The reason I wrote this in the English dub was honestly so I wouldn't have to constantly look up how to spell the character names.

 **Wait did Yugi fricking make Pokémon?**

While this really isn't a question I'd answer here, this was my first review ever. So, shout out to ThatOneRyou for being with me since literally the very beginning. When I got the email for your review it gave me a heart attack and then a laugh. It was the beginning of amazing things to come.

 **Why would Yugi make a Pokemon game?**

The story reason: He liked the idea of connecting with creatures, thanks to duel spirits, and wanted to make a game that even those that couldn't see spirits got the same connection. In this universe, he invented the entirety of Pokémon and his company's first game in the series would have been a Fire Red like game with the first four generations of Pokémon. The game he released at the end of the story had Pokémon all the way up to generation eight.

The real reason: When I was first drafting this out, I knew Yugi would be playing a shadow game with Atem similar to their ceremonial battle. I didn't feel like just having another duel would be enough, then I remembered that Yugi wanted to be a game maker. It would make so much thematic sense for this last duel to be a game of Yugi's creation. The problem is, I'm horrible at coming up with original game ideas. Pokémon has been my longest running passion so…

Also, shout out to angiembabe. You were there this whole ride, giving a review on almost every chapter. I can't thank you enough for taking the time to do that. It was one of the few things that kept me on schedule.


End file.
